Glentauchers Distillery: History, Owner, Range and Visitor Guide
Updated: Oct 24
Glentauchers is a Chivas Brothers distillery at Mulben, near Keith in Moray. It was built in the 1890s for James Buchanan's blends and today supplies Ballantine's. It was mothballed from 1985 to 1992 and is run largely by hand. This profile covers its history, owner, production and visitor status.
In this guide
Summarise this guide with AI
Glentauchers at a glance
Distillery fact | Verified detail |
|---|---|
Location | Mulben, Speyside |
Region | Speyside, Scotland |
Founded / established | 1897 |
Owner | Chivas Brothers / Pernod Ricard |
Bottles documented | 2 named expressions in Whisky Clan's bottle database |
Visiting | See visitor information in the original research below. Check official opening and booking details before travelling. |
Join the Glentauchers whisky community poll
Which whiskies have you tried? What should Whisky Clan review next? Open the highlighted poll below, answer four quick questions and share your preferences with the community.
TAKE THE GLENTAUCHERS COMMUNITY POLL · 4 QUICK QUESTIONS
Answer four quick questions to see real reader percentages. No account or email is required.
Glentauchers history, people and production
Where is Glentauchers distillery?
Glentauchers is at Mulben in Moray, a few miles west of Keith. The address is Glentauchers Distillery, Mulben, Moray, AB55 6YL. Wikipedia notes that the hamlet of Tauchers was served by Tauchers Platform railway station until 1964, with a freight siding that once ran to the distillery.
Glentauchers history
Scotchwhisky.com describes Glentauchers as a member of the 1890s group of distilleries, established by James Buchanan and Co. to supply its Buchanan's and Black and White blends.
1897 or 1898: founded by James Buchanan and W. P. Lowrie. Wikipedia credits a design by John Alcock overseen by Charles Doig and Son. Scotchwhisky.com calls it a Charles Doig design.
1903: incorporated as the Glentauchers-Glenlivet Distillery Co.
1906: James Buchanan and Co. takes over the company.
1910s: experiments with continuous pot still distillation, using a 100% barley mash in an adapted pot still.
1925: Buchanan merges into the Distillers Company.
1966: stills increased from two to six.
1985: mothballed.
1989: bought by Allied Distillers.
1992: production resumes.
2005: the Allied estate joins Chivas Brothers.
2017: a 15 year old single malt is released under the Ballantine's brand, according to Scotchwhisky.com.
How Glentauchers makes its whisky
Scotchwhisky.com lists a stainless steel lauter mash tun, six wooden washbacks, a 60 hour fermentation, three wash stills and three spirit stills, shell and tube condensers and new make strength of 68.5%. The malt is unpeated and water comes from a dam fed by the Rosarie Burn.
The Single Cask reports that Glentauchers is the only fully manually operated distillery in the Chivas Brothers estate and serves as a training distillery. It also says the site was the pilot for a heat recovery programme, with total energy use cut by nearly 48% and carbon emissions by 53%, and that the findings were published open source in 2023.
Who owns Glentauchers?
Chivas Brothers, part of Pernod Ricard, since 2005. Earlier owners include James Buchanan and Co., the Distillers Company, United Distillers, Allied Lyons and Allied Domecq.
Glentauchers range
Glentauchers goes mainly into blends, with Ballantine's the best known. Scotchwhisky.com says it is not commonly seen other than as a Gordon and MacPhail bottling. The date of the first official 15 year old differs between sources: Wikipedia and The Single Cask say 2000, Scotchwhisky.com says July 2017 under the Ballantine's brand. No ABVs were found in the sources used.
Visiting Glentauchers
The distillery is not open to the public.
Where the sources differ
Founding is given as 1897 or 1898, capacity as 4.1 million litres by Scotchwhisky.com and 4.5 million litres by The Single Cask and Wikipedia, and fermentation as 60 hours by Scotchwhisky.com and about 56 hours by The Single Cask. Chivas Brothers' own page was not loaded for this profile.
Glentauchers whisky bottle range and cask comparison
Here are named expressions documented from producer or specialist sources, including the available age and ABV. A missing strength is deliberately left as 'Check bottle' rather than estimated.
Bottle / expression | Age | ABV | Cask maturation / notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Glentauchers 15 Year Old Ballantine's Series | 15 years | Check bottle | Ballantine's single malt expression |
Glentauchers 23 Year Old Secret Speyside | 23 years | Check bottle | Older official limited malt release |
Featured bottle: Glentauchers 15 Year Old Ballantine's Series
Regular and rare releases are distinguished in the Whisky Bottles database; a historical catalogue listing does not prove current availability.
More whisky distilleries to explore
Help improve this Whisky Clan guide
Have a verified source, bottle release or correction? Share it through the form below. Newsletter signup is optional and separate.
If the form is not visible, open the contribution form in another tab.
More distilleries in Speyside Scotland
Read about other distilleries in this whisky region.
Frequently asked questions about Glentauchers
Where is Glentauchers distillery?
At Mulben, near Keith, in Moray.
Who owns Glentauchers?
Chivas Brothers, part of Pernod Ricard.
Which blend uses Glentauchers?
Ballantine's, according to Scotchwhisky.com and The Single Cask.
When was Glentauchers mothballed?
1985. Production resumed in 1992.
Can you visit Glentauchers?
No. It is not open to the public.
Sources and photographic credits
Cover image: Glentauchers distillery, geograph.org.uk via Wikimedia Commons.
Featured photograph: original credited image from the Whisky Clan distillery media library. If you own this image and would like the attribution updated, please contact Whisky Clan.
About the author
 | Filip Janczak Storyteller, drinker and explorer of all things whisky. Read more about the person behind Whisky Clan and explore additional reviews and distillery guides. |
Comments