Beam Suntory to renovate Glen Garioch’s distillery in Oldmeldrum

Beam Suntory is making a significant £6 million investment in Glen Garioch’s renowned distillery in Oldmeldrum. One of the oldest operating distilleries in Scotland, Glen Garioch has been making its single malt Scotch whisky in the historic market town of Oldmeldrum, near Aberdeen in North East Scotland, since 1797.

The renovation will see the distillery return to more traditional production processes, while also introducing new cutting-edge technology for direct-fired distillation. The planned changes will also reduce the distillery’s carbon footprint. Work began in 2020, and various stages are expected to be completed over the course of 2021.

The cornerstone of this transformation will be the reintroduction of floor maltings as well as the installation of direct-fired heating to the wash still – traditional methods still used by only a handful of whisky distilleries. The return to these traditional processes is a sign of Glen Garioch’s deep respect for its rich heritage, as well as the complexity and quality of its small batch, hand-crafted Highland single malt.

To complement this return to tradition, Glen Garioch has developed a state-of-the-art, highly efficient and safe method for direct fired distillation, which Beam Suntory anticipates will reduce the distillery’s carbon footprint by around 15 percent.

The first new make spirit will come off the stills later in 2021.