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Longmorn
Founded
1893
Region
Speyside
Status
Operational
Company
Production type
Single Malt
Production capacity
4,500,000 litres per year
Longmorn is a Speyside malt distillery that was built in 1893 by John Duff (who also constructed Benriach next-door just five years later) and it quickly became hugely popular with blenders on account of its fruity and sweet flavours and a weighty profile that saw it age well in both bourbon and sherry casks. In 1899 it was bought by the Grant's of Glenlivet which through a series of mergers saw it become part of the Chivas Brothers division of Seagram in 1977. It remains part of the Chivas Brothers holdings to this day, under the wider umbrella of Pernod Ricard.
The majority of Longmorn malt finds its way into blends such as Ballantine's, Chivas Regal and Royal Salue, however it also has a single malt brand aimed at the premium category and is a regular fixture on the independent bottling scene as well.
Following the merger in 1970 of Longmorn-Glenlivet Distillery Co with one of its biggest customers, the blender Hill, Thomson & Co, the latter was licensed the Longmorn single malt brand which it marketed to its distributors in Europe (primarily Italy). Always offered as a 10-year-old, these were labelled originally as "straight malt" and later as "Highland malt," and featured the company logo of Longmorn-Glenlivet Distillery Co. This same label design was then re-licensed by Seagram in the late 1970s to the Elgin-based independent bottler, Gordon & MacPhail, which continues to use it to this day as part of its Distillery Labels collection.
A new 10-year-old was then released in the 1980s, again primarily in Europe and presented in an unusual square-shaped bottle before being replaced by a 15-year-old. The brand was then relaunched in 1993 and the following year packaged alongside Benriach, Glen Keith and Strathisla in a stable of single malts named The Heritage Selection by Chivas Brothers.
In 2007, with The Heritage Selection distilleries now carved up by the mothballing of Glen Keith and the sale of Benriach, Longmorn was again relaunched with a new 16-year-old as its core expression. This was then joined by a non-age statement called The Distiller's Choice and several limited editions in the Secret Speyside collection.
As of 2023, Longmorn was been promoted as a prestige brand by Chivas Brothers and its core range is made up of an 18-, 22- and 30-year-old.
Current owner
Longmorn Distillery
Longmorn Crescent
Elgin
IV30 2SJ
Scotland
Active brands
Single Malt
