THERE must be hundreds, if not thousands, of people like me, who regularly raise a glass of Scotland’s national drink to their lips, savour the smell and taste, then knock it back without really giving it a great deal of thought.
Whisky, the water of life, is one of the reasons Scotland is so well known across the world and one of the reasons that millions of visitors are drawn here.
But like a lot of the good things found on our own doorstep, I dare say some of us take it for granted, without really appreciating the history behind it or the skill required to make it.
While I’d like to think we invented it, the first mention of distilling can be traced back to the fourth century BC, when the Greeks first started dabbling.
It wasn’t until 1494, when James IV was on the throne in Scotland and Henry VII in England, that the first record of distilling in Scotland was made.
With centuries of experience under our belts, we Scots are rather good at making the stuff. In fact, we’re masters at it.
The residents of Speyside are particularly well versed in the art and the area is home to numerous world-class distilleries.
Among them is The Macallan, which recently celebrated the opening of The Macallan Masters of Spirit Experience, a £1million centre where visitors, aged eight and over, can learn more about what lies at the heart of The Macallan.
The distillery and visitor centre sits within the Easter Elchies Estate at Craigellachie, which has been The Macallan’s spiritual home since the distillery was founded in 1824.
The River Spey runs through the estate, which has a long and interesting history.
In 1820, Elchies House and farm were rented from the owner, Lord Seafield, by Alexander Reid, a man with a reputation for applying advanced methods of farming.
Four years later, and with the full support of the Laird, Alexander Reid established the first licensed distillery on the site.
He named it Macallan, the former name of the parish.
By the time he passed away in 1847, Reid had established a reputation for the superior quality of his whisky.
Today’s visitors can stroll around the superb estate grounds which enjoy fine views of Ben Rinnes and the sparkling Spey, said to be the fastest-flowing river in Scotland and a favourite with fishermen.
But the best way to learn more about whisky is to sign up for one of the two distillery tours on offer.
Unlike some distilleries, which happily cope with coach-loads of visitors at a time, at Macallan it’s a much more personal tour that’s offered, with an experienced guide conducting groups of just 10 around at a time.
Smaller numbers mean everyone can hear what’s being said and it allows visitors to ask questions without feeling like they are holding up the rest of the tour.
The single malt producer has created a highly innovative and distinctive distillery experience through a transparent and interactive learning journey that takes visitors through the production lifecycle of The Macallan.
The two main thrusts of the tour are the Masters of Spirit and Masters of Wood exhibitions.
David Cox, director at The Macallan, said: “The objective, as for Masters of Wood, was to interpret The Macallan in an innovative and highly memorable way, and to bring to life those elements which give The Macallan its distinctive character and long-established reputation for product excellence.
“The challenge to our project team was to develop an outstanding experience for our visitors while working closely with The Macallan production team to ensure that the experience fitted seamlessly within an active, operating distillery.”
The tour begins in the newly built glass atrium which houses the Masters of Spirit Experience. The atrium has been designed to bring the outside in and remind visitors of the important role the elements of sun, wind, rain and the four seasons have to play when it comes to making this single malt.
Superb large photographs taken by Robert Kessler, a fellow of Kew Gardens, show the connections between the local geology and water source.
The huge photographs, beautifully lit and handcrafted, bring together art and science through enlarged microscope images never seen before in the context of a whisky distillery.
This area also has a series of plinths which highlight the role played by raw materials such as copper, granite, wood and water as well as barley, yeast and enzymes – all of which influence the character of this particular single malt whisky which is made only from barley, water drawn from springs within the estate grounds, and yeast.
Our chatty guide, Jenny, explained in detail the process of making whisky, while guiding us through the tun room, which houses six recently hand-built Oregon pine washbacks which have glass panels so visitors can see the barley, yeast and water being transformed into our favourite dram.
The tour continues into the stillroom, where we learned about The Macallan’s curiously small copper stills, and the finest cut – the cut being the amount of distilled spirit collected from the stills as “new make” spirit.
Only 16% of the distilled spirit goes on to be casked; one of the finest cuts in the industry.
At this stage, it’s still a clear liquid which can be seen – via see-through pipes – rushing around the distillery. A clever stopper system allows you to smell it at this stage, something that plays tricks on the mind as, although it’s starting to smell like whisky, it’s crystal clear.
The next stage of the tour is the fascinating Masters of Wood Experience, where we learned how the type of oak casks used contribute to the natural colours, aromas and flavours of the whisky, along with the fascinating processes of how the barrels are made.
Sniffing isn’t generally a sign of politeness, but we were encouraged to put our noses to the test several times; sampling different smells within a funky walkway where glass containers contained examples of the different aromas found in whisky including chocolate (my favourite), vanilla and dried fruit, and again in the warehouse area, where large whisky barrels are laid out waiting to be sniffed.
By the time our tour finished, some 80 minutes later, we were armed with knowledge and ready for our complimentary dram, which, let me assure you, tasted wonderful.
The experience tour which we undertook costs just £8 for an adult and £4 for a child. The precious tour, a comprehensive two-hour tour which includes a nosing and tasting session and lasts more than two hours, cost £20.
Booking in advance for both tours is essential. Call the distillery on 01340 872280.