Clynelish and Brora, two distilleries intertwined by a shared historical past and site on Scotland’s northern coast, every maintain a singular place on the planet of whisky. Whereas Clynelish continued to supply its signature waxy and maritime malt, primarily for mixing, Brora lay dormant till 2021, its legacy preserved in a restricted variety of extremely sought-after bottlings.
This text explores the intertwined narratives of Clynelish and Brora, from their origins within the tumultuous period of the Highland Clearances to their contrasting fates within the trendy whisky market. We’ll delve into the components that formed their manufacturing kinds, the financial forces that led to Brora’s closure, and the current efforts to revive this iconic distillery. Whether or not you’re intrigued by the historic significance of Clynelish and Brora or just interested in their distinctive whiskies, this exploration provides a complete have a look at their shared previous and divergent futures.
Clynelish Origins: From ‘Clearance’ Distillery to Wartime
Clynelish is considered one of quite a few distilleries (additionally together with Talisker) established on account of the ‘Highland Clearances’ which occurred within the early 19th Century. These ‘Clearances’ occurred as landowners realized the revenue to be gained by changing their lands to large-scale sheep farming, in contrast with the low revenue gained from small-scale meals development underneath conventional Scottish croft farming.
Below the ‘Clearances’ 1000’s of tenant farmers have been forcibly evicted from land which their households had resided upon and tended for generations. In Sutherland the Marquis of Stafford alongside his spouse, (from 1833 the 1st Duke and Duchess of Sutherland) and their property managers oversaw the forcible eviction of 15,000 folks, and the burning of over 500 croft farms throughout an property of 500,000 acres. Lots of these evicted have been both despatched overseas to America, Canada, or Australia or resettled on the coast in new settlements comparable to Brora, the place many farmers have been anticipated to develop into fishermen.
Within the years following the ‘Clearances,’ the Marquis of Stafford established quite a few new companies in Brora, to be staffed by the previous farming tenants, together with a brickworks, weavers, and salt panning, whereas additionally increasing the prevailing coal fields.
In 1819, the Marquis spent £750 to construct a brand new distillery on one of many farms exterior Brora. Except for creating one other supply of employment, the distillery would additionally present a steady marketplace for native barley produced by tenants ‘cleared’ to the coast and supply competitors towards the illicit distillers creating social unrest within the space. The native availability of a water supply, coal, and a labor pressure for coal mining have been all possible components influencing the selection to determine the distillery at Brora. The brand new distillery would go on to develop into often called Clynelish, derived from the Gaelic for ‘sloped backyard’.
Clynelish was not a hit in its early years. In an early setback, the coal from the Brora coalfields turned out to be poor high quality and never match to fireside the pot stills for malting until combined with peat from close by bogs. The distillery’s first recorded licensed supervisor, James Harper, went bankrupt in 1827, earlier than regaining the license in 1828 and working Clynelish till 1834. Clynelish handed between quite a few licensees till George Lawson & Sons took over in 1846, working the distillery till 1896 and offering a interval of stability. Visiting Clynelish in 1886 Alfred Barnard, the Victorian author and distilling historian, recorded seeing a powerful operation with an distinctive status.
In 1896, Glasgow blenders James Ainslie & Heilbron in partnership with John Danger bought Clynelish from the Sutherland property. Ainslie and Danger expanded the positioning constructing new warehouses, rebuilding and enlarging Clynelish right into a basic Victorian distilling plant, topped with pagodas.
Clynelish was taken over by John Danger and the Distillers Firm Restricted (DCL) in 1912 when Ainslie was pressured to promote his pursuits within the distillery to outlive chapter. The whisky service provider and blenders firm John Walker & Sons additionally bought an curiosity within the distillery in 1916, primarily to safeguard common provides for their very own blends. Though extremely thought to be a filling malt for blends, Clynelish was obtainable as a single malt presently and was one of many malts referenced by Charles Saintsbury in Notes on a Cellar-E-book (1920).
After John Danger was purchased out in 1925, a merger with John Walker & Sons allowed DCL to develop into the only real proprietor of Clynelish. In 1930 DCL transferred the distillery to its subsidiary firm Scottish Malt Distillers (SMD). Clynelish was closed from March 1931, throughout the despair years of the Thirties, earlier than resuming manufacturing in September 1938. Wartime restrictions on the provision of barley to distillers pressured one other closure lasting from Could 1941 till November 1945, though rumors continued that the recognition and demand for Clynelish meant low-level manufacturing continued throughout the Second World Struggle.
Increase and Bust: Clynelish and Brora Sixties-Nineteen Eighties
Throughout the Sixties, DCL expanded and rebuilt a lot of its present distilleries to fulfill a frequently growing demand for blended Scotch whisky, because the whisky market loved a increase within the post-war interval. At Clynelish the primary enhancements and refurbishments occurred in 1960 when the distillery was transformed to electrical energy and inside steam heating for the stills, ending the usage of domestically mined coal from Brora. These modernizations weren’t ample to extend manufacturing as Clynelish continued to function utilizing solely a single pair of stills, guaranteeing demand continued to far outstrip the distillery’s provide capabilities.
In 1966 to extend the capability at Clynelish, DCL started the development of a brand new trendy distillery with six stills alongside the previous manufacturing buildings. The brand new distillery was accomplished in August 1967, though to profit from the model’s status each distilleries would quickly function underneath the identify Clynelish.
For a brief interval from August 1967 till August 1968, each distilleries have been producing concurrently with the brand new distillery named ‘Clynelish A’ and the previous ‘Clynelish B’, though whisky casks produced by both distillery have been stenciled and later used for mixing as Clynelish. The previous distillery ceased manufacturing as ‘Clynelish B’ in August 1968 and was mothballed. From this time solely the brand new trendy distillery on the web site would produce whisky as Clynelish.
In 1969 the previous distillery at Clynelish was reopened with the purpose of manufacturing a closely peated Islay-style whisky for mixing functions. It was now renamed Brora, because the Scotch Whisky Affiliation (SWA) had raised issues about two distilleries carrying the identical identify. Pressured to vary the identify of one of many Clynelish distilleries, DCL had opted for the older one reverting to a reputation allegedly used throughout the distillery’s early historical past; Brora. Laws enacted in 1975 would subsequently make it unlawful for 2 or extra distilleries to function underneath the identical identify.
Brora’s transition to the manufacturing of closely peated malt was the results of Islay affected by durations of drought, mixed with the closure of DCL’s Islay distillery Caol Ila for rebuilding work between 1972 and 1974. Brora’s closely peated years continued till 1973, after which the smoke was reduce though the distillery’s peating ranges dropped once more after 1977. Peating ranges are decided by measuring the Phenol Components per Million (PPM) of the malted barley used within the distilling course of. At Brora the ppm degree different from 7ppm to as excessive as 45ppm, peaking between 1970-77. It’s advised when producing at its most closely peated Brora shared maltings with Caol Ila and Talisker, whereas lowering peat ranges on the finish of the Seventies reveal when Brora started to make use of the identical barley as Clynelish.
The Seventies recession, mixed with a youthful era turning away from conventional spirits impacted the sale of Scotch. The whisky trade did not adapt successfully, sustaining a constantly excessive manufacturing regardless of declining gross sales.
By the Nineteen Eighties, the trade held an extra of maturing spirit, often called the whisky loch, though the market had not but recovered. This pressured distillery homeowners, together with DCL, to make cutbacks together with the closure of quite a few distilleries, a call typically based mostly upon the scale of manufacturing capability and duplication of malt fashion. Brora, by this time one of many smallest capability distilleries owned by DCL couldn’t compete with Caol Ila or Clynelish for producing Islay or Highland-style malts, and was completely closed on the 17th March 1983.
Clynelish – The Hidden Malt
Following Brora’s closure, Clynelish remained lively producing giant quantities of spirit for mixing, primarily to be used in DCL’s Johnnie Walker vary of blended whiskies. The significance of Clynelish for mixing is as a result of malt’s distinctive oily and waxy textured character which provides a particular mouthfeel to blends, notably for blenders to take care of consistency.
Though Clynelish remained a core mixing malt, the restoration of the Scotch whisky market within the late Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties was pushed by a big development in demand for single malt. A collection of single malt bottling collections have been launched by United Distillers, (shaped after the takeover of DCL) the Basic Malt assortment in 1988, and the Flora and Fauna vary with the primary expressions launched in 1991.
In 1995, United Distillers first launched the Uncommon Malts Choice, a collection of cask power single malt bottlings primarily from distilleries that had both closed or been demolished. The whiskies needed to be aged between 18 and 30 years previous and distilled within the years 1969-1981. The final launch of the Uncommon Malts Choice was in 2005, with later bottlings together with malts from United Distillers-owned distilleries which have been hardly ever bottled as single malts. These expressions would come with a Clynelish 1972 aged 24 years, and a Clynelish 1974 aged 23 years each included within the 1997 releases.
The institution of Diageo (successor to each United Distillers and DCL) in 1997, was accompanied by the enterprise technique to extra severely promote quite a few whisky manufacturers as single malts. Clynelish was amongst the distilleries focused for promotion, a 14 12 months Previous single malt would briefly be added to the Flora and Fauna vary in 2001.
In 2002, Diageo unveiled the Hidden Malts vary, a group of single malt bottlings from distilleries that historically produced malt primarily for mixing, together with Glen Ord, Caol Ila, Glen Elgin and a 14 12 months Previous expression from Clynelish marketed as a coastal malt. The Clynelish distillery would open to the general public with the emergence of whisky tourism, permitting guests to view the silent Brora distillery and its stills at a distance.
Diageo has additionally continued to advertise the Clynelish distillery and model by way of the discharge of restricted bottlings, the annual Particular Releases have featured Clynelish Choose Reserve bottlings for 2 years in 2014-15. Clynelish was briefly closed in 2016 for a year-long improve which was accomplished in June 2017, equipping the distillery with an improved mash tun and washbacks which have elevated the capability to 4.8 million litres of alcohol. As a part of a £150 million plan to improve tourism services at Diageo distilleries throughout Scotland, in 2018 it was introduced that Clynelish’s customer heart would obtain a complete improve together with a brand new bar and tasting space.
Brora – A Misplaced Distillery Revived
Following Brora’s closure in 1983, the vast majority of tools was faraway from the distillery. Solely the oil-fired stills, receiver, and two worm tubs remained in place, left to slowly decay as Brora fell silent and seemingly destined to affix Scotland’s misplaced distilleries. Brora has as a substitute gained the standing of a cult malt on account of a rising curiosity amongst whisky customers for single malts from closed distilleries, mixed with the choice to make Brora’s final remaining inventory obtainable as particular restricted bottlings.
In 1995, United Distillers (shaped after the takeover of DCL) first launched the Uncommon Malts Choice, a collection of cask power single malt bottlings primarily from distilleries that had both closed or been demolished. The whiskies needed to be aged between 18 and 30 years previous and distilled within the years 1969-1981. The primary releases of the Uncommon Malts Choice in 1995 included a Brora 1972 aged 20 years, and a Brora 1972 aged 22 years (bottled at three totally different cask strengths) which are actually extremely wanted by collectors eager to personal these historic bottlings.
In 2001, Diageo created a brand new vary of annual Particular Releases, a number of limited-edition cask power whiskies from well-known and closed distilleries. The 2002 Particular Releases featured the primary introduction of Brora, a 30 12 months Previous expression, though extremely anticipated bottlings from the distillery have since been included within the vary yearly as much as 2017.
In October 2017, Diageo introduced plans to reopen the Brora and Port Ellen distilleries, each beforehand closed in 1983, as a part of a £35 million funding. The plans included refurbishing Brora’s authentic buildings and stills, alongside the creation of a devoted customer heart to determine a Brora ‘model house.’ Brora formally reopened in Could 2021, marking the end result of years of meticulous restoration.
The distillery now has a capability of roughly 800,000 liters of alcohol per yr, just like Oban Distillery. Brora’s authentic stills, rigorously refurbished, stay on the coronary heart of its manufacturing, whereas the restored Nineteenth-century nonetheless home provides a hanging mix of heritage and trendy performance.
To have fun its reopening, Brora launched a particular Brora Triptych in 2021, a group of three uncommon single malts—Elusive Legacy, Age of Peat, and Timeless Unique—that spotlight key eras of the distillery’s historical past. These expressions reveal Brora’s dedication to sustaining its storied legacy whereas embracing its revival.
Along with the Triptych, Brora has continued to launch sought-after expressions, together with a Brora 1982 39 12 months Previous in 2021, which obtained crucial popularity of its wealthy and smoky character. The distillery has additionally drawn reward for its sustainable practices, incorporating renewable vitality and conservation efforts to protect the encompassing Highland panorama.
Now totally operational, Brora has firmly re-established itself as a beacon of conventional craftsmanship and one of the vital revered names in scotch whisky. Its revival not solely preserves an iconic piece of whisky historical past but additionally ensures Brora continues to captivate fans for generations to come back.
