Glen Elgin has deep roots in three distilleries connected to White Horse Blended Whisky. First is Lagavulin, inherited by the brand's creator Peter Mackie from his father. Second is Craigellachie, built by Mackie in 1891 to supply malt whisky for White Horse. Third is Glen Elgin itself, owned not by the Mackie family but by DCL, which acquired White Horse Distillers in 1927. Since the 1890s, single malt whisky from these three distilleries formed the base of White Horse, one of the world's best-selling whiskies in the first half of the 20th century. Though now ranked 15th in whisky sales, White Horse remains the most popular Scotch whisky in some regions, selling 19 million bottles in 2018.
Although Glen Elgin wasn't included in Diageo's 1988 Classic Malts series, it has been sold as a single malt since 1977. Respected by blenders and recognized for its consumer sales potential, it briefly appeared in the Flora & Fauna series. In 2002, Diageo gave four brands increased focus—Glen Elgin, Caol Ila, Clynelish, and Glen Ord—launching the Hidden Malts series. While Hidden Malts sold for several years, Glen Ord has since joined The Singleton family, while the other three now appear in the expanded Classic Malts series.
Since 2001, Glen Elgin Distillery has operated with one 8.4-ton Steinecker full-lauter mash tun, nine larch washbacks (two replaced in 2018), and six small stills. The distillery runs 12-16 mashes weekly. The stills are connected to six wooden worm tub condensers. In 2019, the distillery operated five days per week, producing 1.8 million liters of new make spirit annually.
The sole official bottling is Glen Elgin 12 Year Old. In 2017, Glen Elgin released an 18-year-old expression for the Special Releases series, matured in bodega European oak sherry casks.
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