Balvenie
Encyclopedia
The Balvenie Distillery is a Speyside
single malt
Scotch
whisky
distillery in Dufftown
, Scotland
owned by William Grant & Sons
.
. At seven he was sent to augment the family income by herding cattle at a farm on the upper reaches of the River Deveron
. Apprenticed to a shoemaker and after a spell as a clerk, William took a job in 1866 as a book-keeper
at Mortlach distillery. Immediately he set about learning the art of distilling and in a short time he was appointed clerk and manager.
After almost twenty years of learning the art of distilling, William Grant resigned from his job at the Mortlach distillery and bought a field beneath the towering shadow of Balvenie Castle
. He then drew up plans for his distillery and the foundation stone was laid in the autumn of 1886.
William Grant remained active in the company until his death in 1923 at the age of 83.
The building took fifteen months to complete and on 1 May 1893, the first distillation took place at the Balvenie Distillery.
In 2007, The Balvenie's Global Brand Ambassador, David Mair presented an online documentary series about the making of malt whisky, shot in and around the Balvenie Distillery.
competitions. For example, at the San Francisco World Spirits Competitions from 2006–2010, its 15-year single barrel received: gold, silver, gold, silver, and double gold medals. Its Portwood Cask Finish 21 year yielded similarly good results, winning double gold in 2009—the last year it was rated in that competition. At the 2006 International Spirits Challenge, Balvenie's collective offerings yielded the biggest gold medal haul for any brand in any one year since the competition began.
Other notable awards:
2009 International Spirits Challenge
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
2009 International Wine & Spirit Competition
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Best in Class
2008 International Spirits Challenge
The Balvenie Signature Aged 12 Years - Gold
2008 International Wine & Spirit Competition
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
The Balvenie Vintage 1974 - Gold
The Balvenie Vintage 1974 - Best in Class
2008 Scotch Whisky Masters
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
2008 San Francisco World Spirits Competition
The Balvenie Single Barrel 15 Year Old - Gold
The Balvenie SherryOak 17 Year Old - Gold
2008 World Whiskies Awards
The Balvenie SherryOak 17 Year Old - Speyside category winner
Speyside Single Malts
Speyside single malts are single malt Scotch whiskies, distilled in Strathspey, the area around the River Spey in Moray and Badenoch and Strathspey, in northeastern Scotland....
single malt
Single malt Scotch
Single Malt Scotch is whisky made in Scotland using a pot still distillation process at a single distillery, with malted barley as the only grain ingredient...
Scotch
Scotch whisky
Scotch whisky is whisky made in Scotland.Scotch whisky is divided into five distinct categories: Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Single Grain Scotch Whisky, Blended Malt Scotch Whisky , Blended Grain Scotch Whisky, and Blended Scotch Whisky.All Scotch whisky must be aged in oak barrels for at least three...
whisky
Whisky
Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
distillery in Dufftown
Dufftown
Dufftown is a burgh in Banffshire, Scotland.The town was originally named Mortlach in the Middle Ages, until the 19th century when the Earl of Fife built the town as a housing for soldiers returning home from war...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
owned by William Grant & Sons
William Grant & Sons
William Grant & Sons Ltd. is an independent, family-owned Scottish company which distills Scotch whisky and other selected categories of spirits. It was established in 1887 by William Grant, and is now run by the descendants of the founder. It is the largest of the handful of Scotch whisky...
.
William Grant
William Grant was born on 19 December 1839 in his father's house in DufftownDufftown
Dufftown is a burgh in Banffshire, Scotland.The town was originally named Mortlach in the Middle Ages, until the 19th century when the Earl of Fife built the town as a housing for soldiers returning home from war...
. At seven he was sent to augment the family income by herding cattle at a farm on the upper reaches of the River Deveron
River Deveron
The River Deveron , known anciently as the Dovern, is a river in the north east of Scotland. The river has a length of 60 miles, and has a reputation for its salmon, sea trout and brown trout fishing...
. Apprenticed to a shoemaker and after a spell as a clerk, William took a job in 1866 as a book-keeper
Bookkeeping
Bookkeeping is the recording of financial transactions. Transactions include sales, purchases, income, receipts and payments by an individual or organization. Bookkeeping is usually performed by a bookkeeper. Bookkeeping should not be confused with accounting. The accounting process is usually...
at Mortlach distillery. Immediately he set about learning the art of distilling and in a short time he was appointed clerk and manager.
After almost twenty years of learning the art of distilling, William Grant resigned from his job at the Mortlach distillery and bought a field beneath the towering shadow of Balvenie Castle
Balvenie Castle
Balvenie Castle is a ruined castle near Dufftown in the Moray region of Scotland.Originally known as Mortlach, it was built in the 12th century by a branch of the powerful Comyn family and extended and altered in the 15th and 16th centuries.The castle fell out of use in the early 14th century when...
. He then drew up plans for his distillery and the foundation stone was laid in the autumn of 1886.
William Grant remained active in the company until his death in 1923 at the age of 83.
Balvenie Distillery
In early 1892 work began to convert an 18th century mansion (Balvenie New House) into a distillery.The building took fifteen months to complete and on 1 May 1893, the first distillation took place at the Balvenie Distillery.
In 2007, The Balvenie's Global Brand Ambassador, David Mair presented an online documentary series about the making of malt whisky, shot in and around the Balvenie Distillery.
Core Range
- Founder's Reserve 10 Year Old (discontinued)
- DoubleWood 12 Year Old
- Signature 12 Year Old (3 batches to date)
- Cuban Cask 14 Year Old (France)
- Caribbean Cask 14 Year Old (USA)
- Single Barrel 15 Year Old
- PortWood 21 Year Old
- Single Barrel 25 Year Old
- The Balvenie Thirty
- The Balvenie Forty
Limited Edition
- Golden Cask 14 Year Old (Travel Retail exclusive)
- Islay Cask 17 Year Old (released 2001)
- NewWood 17 Year Old (released 2005)
- NewOak 17 Year Old (released 2006)
- SherryWood 17 Year Old (released 2007)
- RumCask 17 Year Old (released 2008)
- Madeira Cask 17 Year Old (released 2009)
- Peated Cask 17 Year Old (released 2010)
- PortWood 1989
- PortWood 1991
- PortWood 1993
Awards
Balvenie's offerings have generally performed very well at Spirit RatingsSpirit ratings
With a growing number of microdistilleries and an expanding number of offerings from large corporate entities, a number of institutions have arisen to provide professional evaluations of individual spirits...
competitions. For example, at the San Francisco World Spirits Competitions from 2006–2010, its 15-year single barrel received: gold, silver, gold, silver, and double gold medals. Its Portwood Cask Finish 21 year yielded similarly good results, winning double gold in 2009—the last year it was rated in that competition. At the 2006 International Spirits Challenge, Balvenie's collective offerings yielded the biggest gold medal haul for any brand in any one year since the competition began.
Other notable awards:
2009 International Spirits Challenge
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
2009 International Wine & Spirit Competition
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Best in Class
2008 International Spirits Challenge
The Balvenie Signature Aged 12 Years - Gold
2008 International Wine & Spirit Competition
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
The Balvenie Vintage 1974 - Gold
The Balvenie Vintage 1974 - Best in Class
2008 Scotch Whisky Masters
The Balvenie PortWood 21 Year Old - Gold
2008 San Francisco World Spirits Competition
The Balvenie Single Barrel 15 Year Old - Gold
The Balvenie SherryOak 17 Year Old - Gold
2008 World Whiskies Awards
The Balvenie SherryOak 17 Year Old - Speyside category winner
The Balvenie in popular culture
- A bottle of The Balvenie DoubleWood 12 Year Old was used in a toast in the film The Day After TomorrowThe Day After TomorrowThe Day After Tomorrow is a 2004 American science-fiction disaster film that depicts the catastrophic effects of global warming in a series of extreme weather events that usher in global cooling which leads to a new ice age. The film did well at the box office, grossing $542,771,772 internationally...
.
See also
- WhiskyWhiskyWhisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Different grains are used for different varieties, including barley, malted barley, rye, malted rye, wheat, and corn...
- Scotch whiskyScotch whiskyScotch whisky is whisky made in Scotland.Scotch whisky is divided into five distinct categories: Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Single Grain Scotch Whisky, Blended Malt Scotch Whisky , Blended Grain Scotch Whisky, and Blended Scotch Whisky.All Scotch whisky must be aged in oak barrels for at least three...
- List of whisky brands
- List of distilleries in Scotland