ASSURED MALT Glenmorangie insists on assured malt The Assured UK Malt scheme in action The rain water which falls Glenmorangie – said to mean the ‘glen of on the hills above the tranquillity’– is situated Glenmorangie Distillery on the Dornoch Firth gently seeps down into near Tain about 34 the local sandstone. It is miles north of Inverness. estimated that it does not see daylight again for another hundred years. At that point it finally flows through the spring that provides 10,000 litres of water every hour for the production of the world famous single malt whisky. vast majority, including all that is doubled twice in recent years –in used at Glenmorangie, comes from 1977 and once again in 1990 – the By Peter Crowe Scotland including barley from the original design has always been HGCA Cadboll Farm just down the road adhered to. which we use to make a special Eunson explained the exact he minerals it picks up makes Cadboll Spirit. temperature of the spring water used T the water unusually hard “All our malt is produced by at each of the three ‘washes’ and the compared to that used by many companies within the Assured UK 52 hours required for fermentation distilleries in Scotland. As distillery Malt (AUKM) scheme. I am a great in the ‘washbacks’, In the still house manager Graham Eunson points out, supporter of the scheme and I think the wash is distilled twice, once to it is just one of the factors that give that more people should know about produce the ‘low wines’ at around Glenmorangie whisky its distinctive it. At Glenmorangie we do not treat 24%ABV and then to the spirit still taste, along with the malt, yeast and malt as a commodity. We are where the new-made spirit will be the oak barrels used for maturation. concerned about issues of quality, produced. However, it is only the While none of the other materials reputation and traceability. Brand middle portion of this spirit that goes take quite so long to produce, they values and authenticity are a crucial into cask with the first portion (the are, nonetheless, the result of many part of our business, and buying foreshots), and last portion (the years of skill and experience, like AUKM malt supports those values.” the whisky itself. Brewing took place on this site on Distillery Manager Master Distiller Bill Lumsden the south side of the Dornoch Firth Graham Eunson surveys the spring which says: “Single malt whisky is a luxury as long ago as 1736 and in 1843 produces 10,000 litres product, and, therefore, we have the William Matheson applied for a an hour for the plant. very highest standards at every stage license to distil. In setting up his of its production. At Glenmorangie distillery, Matheson introduced one this has always been our philosophy, of the factors which contribute to the but being part LVMH (Louis Vuitton unique taste of Glenmorangie to this Moët Hennessy) only serves to re- day – the height of the stills. The emphasise the point. People have stills he bought were second-hand high expectations of our product.” and had previously been used for For Bill Lumsden, malt is a key producing gin. At 5.137m (16ft 101/4 part of the process. He worked at inches), they are the tallest in Glenmorangie before taking overall Scotland. responsibility for all three group Given the exactness of the distilleries: Glenmorangie, Ardbeg measurements given by Graham and Glen Moray. He has also worked Eunson, one can clearly see the as a maltster and understands the degree of care that goes into importance of this most vital of ensuring the ongoing authenticity of whisky ingredients. the whisky produced by “When I took up my current Glenmorangie. While each year’s position,” he says, “I was determined production, like fine wines, is very to take malt that fulfilled the highest slightly different, consistency of standards and came only from a very quality remains an obsession. Even limited area. Within the group the though the number of stills has been The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 3 • Issue 11 • November 2007 • www.ibd.org.uk 55 ASSURED MALT ABOVE: Traditional feints) returning for recycling. worker in charge changes the flow for export to 126 countries cask storage at Distiller Eunson says that he takes by hand to determine when the throughout the world. Furthermore, Glenmorangie. the smallest cut in the industry of the changeover point occurs between the every year around 22,000 visitors spirit that ultimately goes on to foreshots, the whisky spirit and the travel up to the north of Scotland to ABOVE RIGHT: The become Glenmorangie and this is feints. see the distillery and find out for famous 5.1metre high just one more sign of the care which Glenmorangie uses ex-bourbon themselves how Glenmorangie is stills in the goes into producing their whisky. casks for its maturation. While some made. Glenmorangie still Although the central console gives spirit goes into casks that have only The answer according to Graham house. control over the stills, the process is ever had bourbon in and some goes Eunson is clear: from clear spring very far from automated, and the into second-fill casks that have water, from the best malt in the previously been used for whisky. At world, from excellent yeast, and any one time around 140,000 casks through maturing in the best oak will be maturing in the distillery’s 15 casks available. However, for warehouses. Here it will stay for at anyone visiting the distillery and least ten years. It may be kept even talking to people such Graham longer and could also be ‘finished’ in Eunson and Bill Lumsden, who are a different cask that has previously responsible for its production, it is been used for wines such as port or clear that Glenmorangie is made not sherry. only from the finest ingredients, but Glenmorangie is one of the top- also with a tradition of loving care selling single-malt scotch whiskies. and attention to detail which is over Around half of its production goes 150 years old. I ABOVE: The control area with a good deal of manual input. ABOVE LEFT: The mash tun LEFT: The washbacks The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 3 • Issue 11 • November 2007 • www.ibd.org.uk 56.