Ardnamurchan
SCOTCH SINGLE MALT WHISKIES > A
ARDNAMURCHAN ,Ardnamurchan
A location on the most westerly point of the British mainland has made Adelphi, Ardnamurchan’s owner, think long and hard about sustainability.
A hydro-electric generator in the river which also provides Ardnamurchan’s cooling water generates all the power required, while a biomass boiler using wood chips from a local forest provides all the hot water. The draff heads to local herds and pot ale goes as fertiliser for the fields.
Two styles of spirit have been made from the outset – peated and unpeated. Both use barley grown on the estate of one of the owners.
Legal distilling was unknown on the remote Ardnamurchan peninsula until independent bottler Adelphi opened its distillery there in 2014. This is not however the first distillery to bear the Adelphi name.
The original was built in the Gorbals district of Glasgow in 1826, passing into the hands of Archibald Walker in 1880, making the firm the only distiller to make whisky in Scotland, Ireland and England. By 1887 it was producing over 500,000 gallons of both malt and grain whisky a year. It was bought by DCL in 1903 and its pot stills stopped four years later. Grain was made until 1932. The site is now where Glasgow’s Central Mosque stands.
Archibald Walker's great-grandson, Jamie, started Adelphi as an independent bottler in 1993. Its current owners bought the firm in 2004.
CAPACITY (MLPA) i
500.000 Ltrs
CONDENSER TYPE i
Shell and tube outside building
FERMENTATION TIME i
72-120 hours
FILLING STRENGTH i
63.50%
GRIST WEIGHT (T) i
2
HEAT SOURCE i
Biomass from locally sourced wood chip
MALT SPECIFICATION i
Concerto; 30ppm
MALT SUPPLIER i
Bairds using malt from Broomhall Farm
MASH TUN TYPE i
Semi-lauter
NEW-MAKE STRENGTH i
74-76%
SINGLE MALT PERCENTAGE i
100%
SPIRIT STILL CHARGE (L) i
6,000
SPIRIT STILL SHAPE i
Traditional with boil ball
SPIRIT STILL SIZE (L) i
6,000
STILLS i
2
WAREHOUSING i
Dunnage on site
WASH STILL CHARGE (L) i
10,000
WASH STILL SHAPE i
Traditional
WASH STILL SIZE (L) i
10,000
WASHBACK CHARGE (L) i
10,000
WASHBACK SIZE (L) i
15,000
WASHBACK TYPE i
4 oak and 3 stainless steel
WASHBACKS i
7
WATER SOURCE i
Glenmore River and springs above the distillery
WORT CLARITY i
High clarity because of 20 minutes recirculation
YEAST TYPE i
Distillers
Adelphi Distillery
2013 - present
ARDNAMURCHAN SPIRIT
November 2016
Demand for Ardnamurchan distillery’s first release has massively outstripped supply – even though the spirit is too young to be called whisky.
Ardnamurchan Spirit 2016 AD
Shades of grey: Ardnamurchan Spirit 2016 AD’s bottle is designed to mark the area’s volcanic past
The remote west coast distillery, owned by independent bottler Adelphi, is releasing 2,500 bottles of Ardnamurchan Spirit 2016 AD, a vatting of immature peated and unpeated spirit filled into cask in June 2015 and October 2014. Spirit must mature for at least three years before it can be labelled as ‘whisky’.
But pre-orders for the new liquid have exceeded 7,500 bottles, with Danish whisky distributor FC Whisky estimating that it could have sold 800 bottles in Denmark alone. ‘Demand has been wild,’ said FC Whisky’s Claus Fisker.
‘Prior to a launch we contact our UK and international agents and distributors to gauge interest and take pre-orders,’ said Adelphi and Ardnamurchan MD Alex Bruce.
‘While it’s not unusual for there to be a healthy amount of interest in our whisky, the demand for our new Ardnamurchan Spirit was exceptionally high. We’ve produced 2,500 bottles, but we could easily have sold three times that amount.’
Ardnamurchan Spirit 2016 AD (the ‘AD’ stands both for Ardnamurchan Distillery and Anno Domini) is a vatting of 29 ex-oloroso and Pedro Ximénez Sherry octaves (55 litres each), filled with peated and unpeated spirit in June 2015 and October 2014 respectively.
The spirit then spent an additional three months marrying in 500-litre ex-Pedro Ximénez Sherry butts.
The bottle, created by Edinburgh-based Nevis Design, is coated in ‘ash/moine’ (slate grey) to mark the volcanic past of the Ardnamurchan peninsula, featuring a hydrometer-shaped window to highlight the colour of the spirit.
Copper lettering refers to the spirit’s production: barley grown on Broomhall Farm in Fife, next to the company’s bottling facility, the use of 100% renewable energy sources, and Sherry casks for maturation.
Bottled at 53% abv, Ardnamurchan Spirit 2016 AD has a UK RRP of £47.50.
1826
THE LOCH KATRINE ADELPHI DISTILLERY BUILT 1826 BY CHARLES AND DAVID GRAY ON THE BANKS OF THE RIVER CLYDE JUST SOUTH OF VICTORIA BRIDGE ON THE NORTHERN EDGE OF THE GORBALS.
1840’S
ANDREW USHER PERFECTS THE ART OF BLENDING, BECOMING THE FATHER OF THE MODERN WHISKY INDUSTRY.
1860
WILLIAM GLADSTONE PASSES A LAW ALLOWING SCOTCH WHISKY TO BE MATURED TAX-FREE UNTIL READY FOR SALE. PUNCH MAGAZINE CELEBRATES WITH THE CARTOON OF THE DANCEY MAN.
1880
OWNERSHIP OF ADELPHI CHANGES TO MESSRS A WALKER AND CO, OWNERS OF TWO EXISTING DISTILLERIES IN LIVERPOOL AND LIMERICK. WALKER AND CO INJECT NEW CAPITAL AND EXPAND THE WORKS TO INCLUDE THE MAKING OF GRAIN SPIRIT AS WELL AS MALT. A NEW COFFEY STILL INSTALLED
1886
A COFFEY STILL AND FOUR POT STILLS ARE ALL IN FULL PRODUCTION AND THE LOCH KATRINE ADELPHI DISTILLERY BECOMES ONE OF THE LARGEST DISTILLERIES IN SCOTLAND WITH AN ANNUAL OUTPUT OF OVER 500,000 GALLONS.
1903
ADELPHI BOUGHT BY THE DISTILLERS COMPANY LTD.
1906
THE GREAT GORBALS DISASTER - ONE OF THE COLOSSAL WASHBACKS IN THE DISTILLERY COLLAPSES, ENGULFING THE NEIGHBOURING STREET IN A TIDAL WAVE OF ALCOHOL AND RESULTING IN FATALITY. MALT DISTILLING CEASES ON SITE.
1907
POT STILLS CEASE PRODUCTION OF MALT WHISKY BUT GRAIN DISTILLING AND CASK MATURATION CONTINUE.
1932
COFFEY STILLS CEASE PRODUCTION OF GRAIN WHISKY
1968
USE OF THE BONDED WAREHOUSING CEASES.
1971
FINAL DEMOLITION OF THE LOCH KATRINE ADELPHI DISTILLERY.
1984
GLASGOW CENTRAL MOSQUE ERECTED ON FORMER SITE OF ADELPHI DISTILLERY.
1993
JAMIE WALKER (THE GREAT-GRANDSON OF ARCHIBALD WALKER) REVIVES THE ADELPHI NAME AS AN INDEPENDENT BOTTLER IN ORDER TO EXPLORE THE MYSTERIES OF MALT WHISKY AND TO MAKE A LIMITED NUMBER OF RARE, WELL-AGED AND TOP QUALITY MALT WHISKIES AVAILABLE TO THE DISCERNING WHISKY ENTHUSIAST. CHARLES MACLEAN BECOMES ADELPHI'S "CHIEF NOSE"
1994
JAMIE WALKER ACQUIRES COPYRIGHT FOR PUNCH MAGAZINE’S CARTOON OF WILLIAM GLADSTONE AND THE DANCEY MAN IS OFFICIALLY ADOPTED AS ADELPHI’S MASCOT.
2003
JAMIE APPROACHED BY KEITH FALCONER AND HIS NEIGHBOUR IN ARGYLL, DONALD HOUSTON, ON A RECOMMENDATION, IN ORDER TO BUY A HOGSHEAD OF WHISKY. THEY WERE SO IMPRESSED THAT THEY ENDED UP BUYING THE COMPANY.
2004
ALEX BRUCE, DESCENDANT OF THE FATHER OF MODERN WHISKY MAKING, JOINS ADELPHI AND BEGINS TO ESTABLISH THE ADELPHI NAME AMONG WHISKY CONNOISSEURS AROUND THE WORLD AS A PURVEYOR OF RARE AND EXCEPTIONAL SINGLE CASKS.
2007
FIRST THOUGHTS OF BUILDING A DISTILLERY IN ORDER TO COMPLETE THE FULL CIRCLE AND SERVICE THE EVER-GROWING DEMAND FOR ADELPHI’S WHISKIES. FEASIBILITY STUDIES BEGIN.
2012
PLANNING PERMISSION GRANTED.
2013
FIRST GROUND BROKEN AT THE DISTILLERY SITE AT GLENBEG.
SUCCESSFUL CONCLUSION OF GROUND WORKS IN THE PRESENCE OF HSH PRINCE ALBERT OF MONACO.
2014
FIRST SPIRIT PRODUCED AT ARDNAMURCHAN DISTILLERY.
ARDNAMURCHAN DISTILLERY OFFICIALLY OPENED BY HRH THE PRINCESS ROYAL ON 25TH JULY 2014.
2016
THE FIRST BOTTLING IS RELEASED, THE ARDNAMURCHAN 2016 AD. THERE WERE 2500 BOTTLES AVAILABLE TO THE WORLD AND IT WAS SOLD OUT OVERNIGHT.
2017
THE SECOND BOTTLING IS RELEASED, THE ARDNAMURCHAN 2017 AD. AGAIN, THERE WERE 2500 BOTTLES AND WAS WELL RECEIVED AROUND THE WORLD. EDINBURGH BASED COMPANY, NEVIS DESIGNS WINS PACKAGING OF THE YEAR AWARD FOR BOTTLE DESIGN.
2018
IN MAY, THE DISTILLERY DOUBLED ITS PRODUCTION TO JUST OVER 400,000 L.P.A.
2018
THE THIRD BOTTLING IS RELEASED, THE ARDNAMURCHAN 2018 AD. THIS TIME WE MANAGED TO FIND BIGGER CASKS THAT HAD MATURED NICELY. WE YIELDED 5,000 BOTTLES FOR THIS RELEASE.
2021
WE ARE HOPING TO RELEASE THE ARDNAMURCHAN SINGLE MALT WHISKY
Een nieuwe, reguliere vatsterkte Ardnamurchan die eigenlijk hetzelfde recept volgt als de eerste. Dus veertig bourbonvaten met ongeturfde whisky en tien vaten met de geturfde variant, gerijpt op bourbon- en sherryvaten. De vatsterkte kwam ditmaal uit op 58.4%.
De geschiedenis van Adelphi is lang en veelzijdig. De originele Loch Katrine Adelphi Distillery werd opgericht in 1826. Na een ramp met een washback in 1907, stopt in 1908 de productie van malt whisky. In 1932 wordt ook het distilleren van grain whisky gestaakt. Met het stoppen van de warehouse activiteiten en de totale afbraak in 1971 komt er een einde aan een bewogen verleden. Sinds 1984 is op de plek van de distilleerderij een moskee gevestigd. De naam wordt nieuw leven ingeblazen met de oprichting van Adelphi als independent bottler. In 2007 ontstaan de eerste plannen voor een eigen distilleerderij. Na de officiële toestemming in 2012 begint de bouw in 2013 in Glenbeg, Argyll in de Western Highlands. Als naam wordt gekozen voor Ardnamurchan. De productie start in 2014 en al in 2016 volgt de eerste botteling. Dit is natuurlijk nog geen whisky, die volgt voor het eerst in 2021. De productie van de distilleerderij bedraagt, na een verdubbeling in 2018, 400.000 L.P.A..
Ardnamurchan
De Ardnamurchan-distilleerderij is in juli 2014 geopend om te beginnen met het produceren van wat uiteindelijk single malt van wereldklasse wordt.
Het schiereiland Ardnamurchan is een heerlijk afgelegen “schiereiland” van rotsachtig gebied dat zich uitstrekt tot het meest westelijke punt van het Verenigd Koninkrijk, net ten noorden van het eiland Mull en ten zuiden van het eiland Skye. Het is toegankelijk met kleine veerboot en via een smalle en bochtige eenbaans weg.
Het is beroemd om zijn uitstekende en ongerepte schoonheid en overvloed aan natuurlijke hulpbronnen.
De Ardnamurchan-distilleerderij ligt halverwege het schiereiland in het kleine dorpje Glenbeg.
Het is ontworpen om er zowel uit te zien als een distilleerderij.
Ardnamurchan gebruikt een platform dat gebruik maakt van Blockchain technologie (Meestal geassosieerd met crypto-valuta zoals bitcoin) OM EEN VEILIG EN IMMUTUELE MODEL VAN DE VOLLEDIGE LEVERINGSKETEN TE BESCHRIJVEN DIE DE FABRICAGE VAN ONZE WHISKEY BESCHRIJFT.
We volgen elke afgewerkte fles whisky en zien elke fles als een unieke aanwinst en leveren, door het gebruik van QR-barcodes en andere smartphone-scanbare technologie, individuele gegevens aan onze klanten die interactie hebben met onze flessen. Hierdoor kan het verhaal van je fles whisky rechtstreeks aan je worden verteld, omdat we elke stap in het productieproces kunnen bewijzen (dankzij de blockchain!), Zodat je de herkomst van je fles whisky kunt ontdekken, terug naar zijn oorsprong. , het opbouwen van vertrouwen in ons proces en het versterken van uw kennis van uw whisky.
HOE DOEN WE DIT?
Onze vrienden bij Arc-net verdelen het hele productieproces in evenementen. Elke gebeurtenis bevat alle gegevens die we nodig hebben om een bepaalde stap te beschrijven. Die gegevens worden naar ons platform verzonden en veilig opgeslagen op de blockchain. Een van de eigenschappen in de ‘Distributed Ledger Technology’ die ten grondslag ligt aan de blockchain (en cryptocurrencies laat werken) is dat zodra gegevens zijn geaccepteerd en vastgelegd op de blockchain, deze volledig onveranderlijk zijn en een onveranderlijk record creëren. Arc-net gebruikt deze eigenschap als een ‘vertrouwenslaag’ die een onbreekbare koppeling tot stand brengt met het fysieke product en de digitale gegevens die de creatie beschrijven.
We zijn verheugd deze technologie te hebben gebruikt voor gebruik in een relatief traditionele industrie. Het stelt ons niet alleen in staat om authenticiteit en herkomst te bewijzen, maar ook om een volledig transparant en allesomvattend productie- en voorraadsysteem van veld tot fles te exploiteren
Hot Hot Hot
"There are two seasons in Scotland: June and Winter" - Billy Connolly
June got hot. Very, very, very hot if you happen to work in a stillhouse on the Scottish West Coast. However, while it was very hot it did keep the midgies docile, every cloud and all that!
It seems we start every newsletter with the 'we've been very busy'... Well, it is true. We seem to be making and selling a LOT of whisky right now and we LOVE it.
Some cool new (and old) kids on the block, Maclean's Nose Blended Scotch Whisky, AD/Paul Launois (3rd batch) and AD/Sherry Release (new!). Maclean's Nose is now available in most places across the Globe. It is our take on Deluxe Blended Scotch Whisky, with a high malt content of 70%. More on the Maclean's Nose whisky further down. Paul Launois and Sherry Release will be leaving our warehouse the first week in July (all going to plan).
We've also modernised our bottling process, yes we now have a semi-automatic bottling line rather as a fully manual one. A new labelling machine has been added to the line, our bottling hall team are delighted not to have to hand label thousands of bottles anymore. Whisky getting labelled quicker means orders going out faster too! Good news all around.
We've got a new Sales Executive on the team, Carl Crafts, to help us continue building the brand in the USA, Canada and some other new markets we've got our eyes on. We've interviewed him further down to see if he cuts the mustard, he's also contributed with a piece on a very cool bottling we've done for the US called... ArdnAmerica. Yes, we went there.
Jenny & Antonia took advantage of their recent France trip and popped in on our good friends Julien and Sarah Launois of Champagne Paul Launois. Antonia is sharing her experience with us all later in the newsletter.
The summer months are looking rather busy for the sales team. We'll have a big lovely tent at the famous Arisaig Highland Games on Wednesday the 26th of July. We'll also be making an appearance at a new whisky show in Edinburgh on the 4th and 5th of August, the A-Club whisky festival (buy tickets here). The BIG one for Edinburgh Whisky peeps is the Whisky Fringe at the magnificent Mansfield Traquair on the 18-20th of August, organised by Royal Mile Whiskies this event is already sold out, but sometimes they do sell return tickets on the door if you want to chance your luck?
Will you be at any of those events? Come and say hello if you are.
If you've made it to the distillery and had a tour, would you mind leaving us a review? We'd love to hear from you, link here to Google reviews, please do share your photographs with us too if you can.
Maclean's Nose
Blended Scotch Whisky
Maclean's Nose - the Blended Scotch Whisky
This is a blended Scotch Whisky with a strong West Coast character.
Made up from the following Malt and Grain Whisky:
40 ex Bourbon ASB of Malt Whisky distilled in the West Highlands (2018)
5 ex Bourbon ASB of Malt Whisky distilled in Campbeltown (2016)
16 ex Sherry hogsheads of Malt Whisky distilled in the West Highlands (2018) 21 ex Bourbon hogsheads of Grain whisky distilled in the Lowlands. (2017)
Maclean's nose has a very high malt content of 70% and a high proportion of ex-sherry casks.
The whisky is non-chill filtered and natural colour. Bottled at 46% ABV.
Tasting notes:
Burnt citrus peel, sea salt, white chocolate and bonfire by the beach.
Here are a couple of highly expensive productions supporting the launch of Maclean's nose:
The explanation of the whisky and the outtakes.
The Dramface crew have written a couple of pieces on the whisky too.
Maclean's Nose - the Nose
Charles MacLean MBE is one of Scotland’s best-known figures, a leading global whisky expert, prolific author, and accidental film star.
Charlie has been researching and writing books and articles on whisky since 1981. He now acts as a consultant to the Scotch whisky industry, especially in relation to flavour assessment. He has been a longstanding sensory mentor for Adelphi Distillery Ltd for almost three decades.
Mclean's Nose The Artist - Reuben Sian de Gourlay
Reuben was nominated Fine Artist of the Year in 2020 at the Scottish Portrait Awards. He graduated in 2022 with a First Class Honours in Bachelor of Arts, Fine Art: Painting, from UAL Camberwell College of Arts.
Find out more about this young Scottish Artist here.
Maclean's Nose - The landmark
About 2 km further along the coast from Ardnamurchan Distillery you find Camas nan Geall, an inlet in a rocky shore line.
The fertile ground on Camus nan Geall has a long history of settlement as evidenced by an ancient chambered cairn and standing stone.
The site has also served as a burial ground for Campbells of Ardslignish as evidenced by some carved gravestones. Above Camas nan Geall you see the rocky headland Maclean's Nose jutting out.
Arching into the Sound of Mull above the mouth of Loch Sunart, Maclean's Nose has long been celebrated by Adelphi, whose own 'Chief nose' Charles Maclean MBE, once wrote of their distillery: "Ardnamurchan Distillery, closest to my nose".
Drone footage of the Nose here.
New recruit - Carl Crafts
Name: Carl Crafts
From: New Hampshire, USA.
Hobbies: Sports, literature, hiking, museums, good food and drink.
Teams you support: Boston Red Sox (Baseball), Boston Celtics (Basketball), Philadelphia Eagles (American football) and the Washington Capitals (Ice hockey).
When did you join the Ardnamurchan team: 1st June 2023
When did you move to Scotland: 31st May 2023
What is your role with AD: Sales Executive, overseeing the Americas, Canada and a bit of the rest of the world. A bit of everything like the the rest of the team!
When did you first hear about the distillery: 2020 when I was working for Scottish Development International. I was researching up and coming Single Malt producers to build on my knowledge.
What are your thoughts on the whisky so far: The whisky is incredibly compelling because of its balance, letting the distillate shine through. Keeping its own unique character and not just letting the casks over power.
What are your thoughts on the team so far: The team is incredible and every member seems to know how to strike that all-important balance between incredible knowledge, passion, and diligence while also knowing it’s important to have a good time. Work hard play hard!
Favourite movie: My cousin Vinny
Music: 20th century Classical
Food: Now that I'm here, it'll be curries and chippies for a while!
Apart from Ardnamurchan whisky what other Scotch do you like: Clynelish, Glencadam, Daluaine, Ledaig and Glenturret.
Where is your first work trip going: Arisaig for domestic but I'm joining Connal on the ArdnAmerica tour in September this year.
Thank you Carl and welcome to the team!
* Carl has written his first piece for the newsletter, check it out below.
ArdnAmerica
By Carl
Connal and I are excited for an upcoming market visit to the East coast of the US in early September. We will join representatives from ImpEx, our importer partner in the US, for a tour of distributors, sales outlets, bars, and restaurants throughout the Northeast Corridor, including the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Not only will this trip serve to support the launch of Maclean’s Nose in the market, which will have landed mere weeks prior, but we’ve also sent a very special ArdnAmerica sherry-matured bottling to commemorate the tour and give the retail and on-premise partners we work with in those states a bit of a unique treat!
With me originally hailing from New Hampshire and having lived in both Boston and Washington, D.C., this will be a fun homecoming for me as we look to improve Ardnamurchan’s positioning and brand awareness in this critically important region. Rest assured we’ll find a bit of time to have some fun as well! Going to cities like New York, Philadelphia, and D.C. without having a few proper meals (and some superb street food) would be an opportunity missed. And we may even try to get Connal to a baseball game at Fenway Park as well (no local bias from me whatsoever here). Keep an eye out for plentiful social media posts during the trip.
If anyone is interested in being a part of any tastings or events during the trip, please reach out to me (carl@adelphidistillery.com) or any member of the AD Sales & Marketing team!
Jenny & Antonia's day-trip
to Champagne
By Antonia
Surprisingly chirpy, after our two days in sultry Paris, drinking wine and eating brain, Jenny and I took the train from the Gare de l'Est to Epernay, where we were delighted to spot the iconic beard of Julien Launois. What followed was undiluted Champenois bliss.
On arrival at the Paul Launois domain in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger, we were happily reunited with Sarah and were able to visit the site of their restaurant (due to open next year) and to take a peek at their lovely chambres-de-hôte. (I'd highly recommend staying here if you're in the champagne region).
Julien then took us down, down, for a tour of their cellars, where we saw many marvels, including the famous suspended casks. When I asked Julien why he did this, he said "Because it looks good"! Jen and I were very moved to see our two intrepid Ardnamurchan casks: original Paul Launois barriques from the first batch, which had travelled to Ardnamurchan, been filled with our whisky for 18 months and then returned to their homeland, to be filled with Champagne wines once again. (Because we felt like it.) We had a wee sip of the fermenting contents and agreed it was an experiment worth the undertaking.
And then, in Julien and Sarah's pretty, sun-dappled courtyard, we were treated to some delicious Paul Launois Contraste, their 100% Pinot Meunier champagne, before being whisked off to a superb lunch at La Gare, the town's old railway station. In the afternoon we had a private tour of Sarah 's impressive studio, where many of her signature motion-figure paintings hang, followed by a trip to their vineyards and then, as if we hadn't been spoiled enough, Julien led us up the Avenue de Champagne in Epernay, for a refreshing glass of Perrier Jouët, before dropping us at the station. Work is sometimes so hard!
An enormous, bubbly thank you to Julien and Sarah for this unforgettable day.
More information on Champagne Paul Launois here.
Some snaps from spring and summer
The Sales and Marketing team visited Port of Leith distillery on their team day out.
The stillhouse got quite hot during the last heatwave, here displaying 41 Degrees Celsius!
The Sales & Marketing team having a well earned drink in Edinburgh.
The MacLean's nose meets the Maclean's Nose.
The MacLean's nose launch party in Edinburgh.
AD/Paul Launois is ready! Jenny is very happy.
Sarah Launois drawing of the 2022 Paul Launois blending session turned in to this year's tissue wrap.
Follow/Like/Share us on Social Media, we're now on LinkedIn too!
Like our whiskies, our social media and newsletters are all produced internally by us. It is the Ardnamurchan team (production and sales) that provides the content and produces all the updates. If you see something you like, give us a 👍 as we really appreciate the interaction, now more than ever!
Thanks again and we'll be in touch soon for another regular update!
Adelphi Distillery Ltd
The Ardnamurchan Distillery
Glenbeg
PH36 4JG
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Charles Maclean and sons release limited edition Ardnamurchan whisky in aid of clean water charity
A new limited edition charity whisky is now available – and every bottle sold will give at least one person clean water for life.
Updated 28 th Mar 2024
The Ardnamurchan 6 year old single Highland malt is the first release by The Maclean Foundation, the Scottish charity founded by author Charles Maclean MBE and his three sons, world record-breaking rowers Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan.
The Maclean brothers’ father Charlie, who is one of the Scotch whisky industry’s most respected figures, worked with Ardnamurchan’s managing director Alex Bruce to select the cask, which was then donated to the charity.
The 243 bottles bottled at cask strength (58.6% ABV) are available from today via Royal Mile Whiskies for £115 per bottle, with a limit of one per buyer given the expected interest in the release.
All profits raised will fund clean water projects in Madagascar, which is among the world’s poorest countries.
Maclean Ardnamurchan whisky
Edinburgh-based whisky writer Charles Maclean MBE, who starred as Rory Macallister in Ken Loach’s award-winning film ‘The Angels’ Share’, said: “The Maclean Foundation is my legacy.
"This is just the beginning of a long-term partnership with the Scotch whisky industry to turn donated casks into clean water.
“The Scotch whisky industry has allowed me to make a living out of something I love, and it has made me very many friends.
"Inspired by my three sons working together, putting my knowledge and experience at the service of others to create long-term positive change is my way of saying thank you. We believe in our mission wholeheartedly. Big or small, every act of compassion, every act of adventure can make a change.”
Alex Bruce, Managing Director of Ardnamurchan Distillery, which is situated halfway along the peninsula in the small village of Glenbeg on Scotland’s West Coast, added: “This cask was one of the standouts of our last blending session – we always end up with one or two which are just too individually interesting to go into the vat.
"This is a quality limited edition produced in an ex-Bourbon cask with a seal of approval from our longstanding sensory mentor Charles Maclean, so we expect there to be high demand.
“The boys' adventurous spirit and Charlie's considered craft is a winning combination. We’re proud to be able to support them on their journey.”
Charlie, Lachlan, Ewan and Jamie Maclean
The Maclean Foundation’s first release is adorned by a unique wrap-around label created by Edinburgh-based branding agency Contagious. The label allows Charlie the space to passionately articulate the story of the whisky which the drinker can explore while enjoying a dram.
A unique holographic QR code on each bottle can be scanned for further information, allowing buyers to learn about the clean water project funded by their purchase.
Youngest brother Lachlan said: “Access to clean water is a basic human need, yet for many communities in rural Madagascar, it remains a luxury. During our visit last year, we saw first-hand the impact boreholes have on people’s lives.
“It costs £6,000 to build and maintain a clean water borehole that can serve 200 people for up to 100 years. Since 2009, our partner Feedback Madagascar has drilled and installed over 300 boreholes in the region – through our work, we’ll continue to add to that total.
Over £49k raised in Demeter collection auction - the first recognising women in whisky
“With each bottle sold, we’ll give people clean water for life by funding the drilling and construction of boreholes, creating long-term positive change for communities. Among many other things, this will transform quality of life, reducing the incidence of diarrhoeal disease.”
This is the third major fundraising initiative since the charity launched less than a year ago: the Maclean brothers, the first three brothers to row across any ocean, completed a cycle and row to every distillery currently selling whisky in Scotland in August.
Charlie raised £67,934.44 for the new family charity through the auction of “very rare and highly collectable” spirits — including a unique Port Ellen from 1979 and a 36-year-old Glengoyne from the Russell Family cask.
This marks the beginning of a long-term campaign, with many more Maclean Foundation whisky releases on the horizon, all to raise money for clean water projects in developing countries and all available from royalmilewhiskies.com.