Stauning Whisky: The Story of Denmark's Oldest Whisky Distillery
Stauning Whisky is a distillery in the western part of Jutland, just south of the village of Stauning near Skjern. It is the oldest whisky distillery in Denmark.
History: nine founders and a slaughterhouse
The distillery was founded in May 2005 by nine Danish whisky enthusiasts. The original idea was to make a whisky resembling the peated whisky of the Scottish island of Islay. The first preparations took place in a building owned by one of the founders, a former private slaughterhouse.
The first distillation took place in August 2006. That autumn the founders presented the new spirit to whisky writer Jim Murray, who was very positive and compared it to the Ardbeg of the 1970s. He also advised them to increase production.
In 2007 they bought a small farm and moved the distillery about 1.5 kilometres south of the village. Production restarted in March 2009, and output rose to 6,000 to 8,000 litres a year against the 200 to 400 litres originally planned.
How it is made
The founders chose to do every stage themselves. Grain is bought locally and floor malted over about a week. The malt is dried in a kiln, and for the peated style it is dried with smoke from peat supplied by the Klosterlund Museum. The wort is distilled in a 1,000 litre pot still and then a 600 litre pot still. The spirit is diluted to 63.5% before going into oak casks, and matures for at least three years.
Growth
Production was about 6,000 litres of new spirit a year from 2009 to 2012, and more than doubled to 15,000 litres in 2012. In 2015 the distillery announced plans to expand capacity to 900,000 litres. Wikipedia lists three standard whiskies: Traditional, Peated and Young Rye, made from malted rye. All are non chill filtered with no added colour.
Awards
Wikipedia records Jim Murray's Whisky Bible scores of 94 for Peated 1st Edition (2013 edition) and 94.5 (2014 edition), and a World Whiskies Award in 2014 for Best European Rye under 7 years.
Founding and production
Wikipedia says Stauning was founded in May 2005 by nine Danish whisky enthusiasts and is the oldest whisky distillery in Denmark. It stands in western Jutland, near the village of Stauning and Skjern. The idea was to make a peated whisky in the manner of Islay. The first distillation was in August 2006, and in 2007 the founders bought a small farm and moved the distillery about 1.5 kilometres south of the village. Production restarted there in March 2009.
Making: floor malting, with peat smoke in the kiln for the peated style, then double distillation in a 1,000 litre and a 600 litre pot still
Maturation: new spirit is reduced to 63.5% and matures in oak for a minimum of 3 years
Output: 6,000 litres a year from 2009 to 2012, 15,000 litres in 2012, and plans announced in 2015 to expand capacity to 900,000 litres
Range: Traditional, Peated and Young Rye, all non chill filtered with no added colour
Awards: Best European Rye under 7 years at the 2014 World Whiskies Awards, and Peated 1st Edition scored 94 points in the 2013 Whisky Bible
Tours: guided tours were offered at least four times a week, per Wikipedia
Sources and gaps
Source: Wikipedia (Stauning Whisky), read 20 October 2026. The official site was not read.
If you would like to add more detail to this profile, tell us what you know about the distillery.
Further source read on 21 October 2026: Wikipedia Stauning Whisky article.
2026 whisky awards, releases and international availability
Stauning's own retailer directory lists UK stockists including Waitrose, Master of Malt, Hedonism Wines and The Whisky Shop; US examples include Flaviar, Binny's and Astor; Canadian examples include LCBO and retailers in British Columbia and Alberta; Australian listings include The Whisky List; and European stockists are identified in countries such as Denmark, Germany, France, the Netherlands and Italy. These listings indicate distribution channels, not guaranteed stock of a particular expression.
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