brackla distillery tour

Royal Brackla 12 year old single malt whisky

Finished in:.

Oloroso Sherry Casks

Rich and exuberant

The full bodied spice of Oloroso and the bright summer breeze of Royal Brackla elegantly combine as a smooth and inviting dram – ripe peaches, black cherries, chocolate covered almonds and muscovado sugar.

Royal Brackla 18 year old single malt whisky

Palo Cortado Sherry Casks

Enticing and complex

Rich spices, creamy vanilla, big, succulent soft fruits and cocoa powder, brightened with a zing of citrus.

Royal Brackla 21 year old single malt whisky

A combination of Oloroso, Palo Cortado & Pedro Ximénez Sherry casks

Regal and assured

Syrupy toffee notes, with richly fragrant summer berries warmed by the sun and dusted in cinnamon and muscovado sugar.

The First Royal Scotch Whisky

For over two centuries this Scotch sanctuary has woven a whisky tale that’s steeped in history. Standing upon fertile farmland on the Cawdor Estate in the Scottish Highlands lies Royal Brackla Distillery, founded by Captain William Fraser in 1812. A distillery quite literally Fit for a King , Royal Brackla was the first Scotch whisky ever granted a Royal Warrant, by King William IV in 1833 – The King’s Own Whisky , still reigning true today. The distillery's style is opulent and fruity with rich sherried notes. Every expression of Royal Brackla is finished in the finest first-fill sherry casks, sourced directly from Spain to ensure an opulent outcome for a noble drink.

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Royal Brackla

The Royal Brackla distillery is located in the village of Cawdor. It was the first distillery to be allowed to carry the "Royal" in its name.

Royal Brackla distillery sits at the bottom of the Northern Highlands, very close to the legendary Loch Ness. The distillery has released a very slim number of official bottlings, which include a 10-year-old, 12-year-old, 16-year-old and a 20-year-old. Sadly, this isn't an official range that the distillery keeps releasing, but instead is a series of sporadic efforts. The most consistent of these releases has been the 10-year-old, which features on the Flora & Fauna range. But it has been discontinued some years ago.

At the end of 2022, Royal Brackla relaunched its core range with Malt Master Stephanie Mcleod. As part of this, the alcohol content was increased to 46% vol. and the bottlings are non-chill-filtered and uncoloured. The core range includes the 12-year-old, the 18-year-old and the 21-year-old.

In contrast to the very limited official bottlings, there has been an extensive number of independent bottlings of Royal Brackla. The majority of these independent bottlings have been released by Cadenheads, although Douglas Laing and Connoisseurs' Choice have also released bottlings. These independent releases vary in age from a 6-year-old to a 40-year-old, and cover nearly all of the ages in between.  

Royal Brackla is a key component in Dewars' Blends. In fact, Royal Brackla was at the pioneering end of Blended Whisky. Andrew Usher, who effectively invented blending, performed his first blending experiments at the distillery. In addition to Dewars, Royal Brackla is also used in the Johnnie Walker Gold and Bisset Blends.

The Production

The distillery has a production capacity of 4 million litres, most of which goes into the blending industry. The distillery uses spring water from the Cursack Springs for production. Royal Brackla also has another spring, the Airfield Springs. In the past, water from the Cawdor Burn was used, but this is now only used as process water.

The Pot Stills

Royal Brackla operates with four pot stills. The two wash stills each have a capacity of 22,000 litres a year, while the spirit stills have a capacity of 21,000 litres. The stills have a unique shape, being somewhere between a tall still and a Speyside still, with spherical lids that are less rounded than usual, but with long, tall necks. The tall shape of the stills' necks allows for an especially high level of reflux in the stills and maximum copper exposure. The distillery character that Royal Brackla aims to achieve is therefore fruity, light and pleasant, with little grassiness.

The Maltings

The malt used in production is not smoky. The distillery had its own malting plant until 1966. Nowadays, the distillery sources its malt from an industrial malting plant in Speyside. Royal Brackla grinds 13 tonnes of malt, which then goes on to be mashed.

The Mashing

The crushed malt is mixed with fresh spring water from Cursack Springs in the modern Stainless Steel Lauter Tun.

The first mash is carried out at 64.5 degrees. The distillery does not have a traditional second and third water. Instead, after the first water, there is a "continuous" water that starts at a temperature of 75 degrees and is raised ever so slightly as the mash is sprinkled with water and all the sugar is dissolved.

The Fermentation

The distillery has a total of eight washbacks, six wooden ones made of Siberian larch (also native to Scotland) and two made of stainless steel, which are located outside.

The Mash Tun fills exactly one washback with 59,000 litres. The fermentation time is a relatively long 70 hours. In this area, the flavours change from earthy, grassy, malty to fruity, which also defines the distillery character of Royal Brackla.

The Warehouse

Although there are a couple of warehouses on site, not a single drop of Royal Brackla matures on the distillery's site. All of the maturing Single Malt is transported to a site owned by Dewars in South Lanarkshire that has 18 newly built warehouses, which are a combination of dunnage and racked.

The History

Royal Brackla is called Royal Brackla for a reason. Captain William Fraser of Brackla House on the estate of Cawdor Castle originally founded the distillery in 1812. The distillery started distilling that same year. The distillery was the first to be granted a royal warrant by King William IV in 1835. Only few other distilleries have ever been given a royal warrant. This distinction gave the distillery leverage over the rest of the market. From this point on, the distillery was allowed to use the addition "Royal" in its name and was also known as "The King's own Whisky".

In 1852, the distillery was taken over by Robert Fraser & Company. They operated the distillery until 1898, at which point the original buildings were demolished and the entire site rebuilt, and the Royal Brackla Distillery Company was founded. In 1919, the distillery changed hands again when John Mitchell and James Leict from Aberdeen acquired the site. In 1926, John Bisset & Company took over the entire distillery. In 1943, SMD took over the distillery when they acquired John Bisset and Company. In 1970, the number of stills was increased from 2 to 4. 

The site was mothballed in 1985, and production resumed six years later in 1991. The site underwent a massive renovation in 1997, with more than 2 million Pound Sterling being spent. One year later, the brand Dewar's as well as the distillery had to be sold due to an obligations of the European watchdog. Bacardi bought the distillery and the Dewar's brand from diageo.

The Visitor Centre

Sadly, Royal Brackla is closed to the public and there is no visitor's centre.

Royal Brackla Distillery Cawdor Nairn IV12 5QY +44 (0)1667-402002

User Notes about the Distillery

Share your experience with other whisky lovers. Write a note about your trip to the Royal Brackla distillery.

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• Royal Brackla

Royal Brackla distillery

Feel a touch of nobility and luxury in this magnificent Royal Lochnagar Distillery, which is one of the royal suppliers to the court . It is located near Balmoral Castle, the summer residence of the British Queen. Taste the fine wine from the Speyside region in a stylish ambience.

Royal Brackla factsheet

Royal brackla timeline:.

1812 : Said to have been founded by Captain William Fraser of Brackla on the Cawdor Estate near Nairn

1817-18 : Operating

1821-37 : W. Fraser

1835 : Royal Warrant granted by William IV as a token of his appreciation of the whisky

1839 : William Fraser & Co.

1850s : Royal warrant renewed by Queen Victoria

1851 : Operating

1852-67 : Robert Fraser

1882-98 : Robert Fraser & Co.

1898 : Aberdeen wine and spirit merchants rebuilt the Distillery

1898 : Reconstructed as the Brackla Distillery Co. Ltd.

.... : Sold to John Mitchell & James Leict of Aberdeen

1926 : Acquired by John Bisset & Co. Ltd., a blending firm Royal Brackla became a key ingredient in Bisset’s Finest Old and Gold Label

.... : John Bisset & Co. Ltd., Aberdeen secured a feu charter

1943 : John Bisset & Co. Ltd., Aberdeen sold the company to Scottish Malt Distillers Ltd. (SMD)

1964 : Stills became steamheated

1965-66 : Distillery renovated and new maltings were built

1970 : Extended from two to four stills (1980 mentioned as well)

1985 : Distillery closed

1990s : Owned by Diageo plc/United Distillers (UD)

1991 : Distillery reopened

1992 : Licensed to John Bisset & Co. Ltd.

1998 : Sold to John Dewar’s & Sons Ltd. (owned by Bacardi) after merge United Distillers (UD) with International Distillers and Vintners (IDV)

1999 : Owned by John Dewar’s & Sons Ltd.

2004 : Owned by John Dewar’s & Sons Ltd.

Can I tour Royal Brackla?

No, unfortunately Royal Brackla distillery is not open to the public for tours

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Royal Brackla

Royal Brackla is one of an elite group of just three distilleries, which were granted permission to use the ‘Royal’ moniker. In the case of Royal Brackla, it was the very first,  bestowed as a result of King William IV's particular liking for the whisky and for a time, it was known as 'The King's Own Whisky’.

The distillery was founded in 1812 by Captain William Fraser and was rebuilt in 1898 and then again in 1966 when the floor maltings were closed and the number of stills was doubled from two to four. An underground water source once used when part of the distillery was used as an airfield during World War Two was conveniently converted into a way of cooling the spirit.

Royal Brackla’s stills are noted for their particularly elegant shape, which includes a long slender neck and lyne arm. This gives a deliciously light spirit that once matured, is full of sweet maltiness, fresh citrus and orchard fruit notes. A truly regal player indeed.

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• Royal Brackla Distillery

More about Royal Brackla Distillery

The oldest distillery in the John Dewar and Sons (Bacardi) portfolio, Brackla Distillery, as it’s originally known, was established in 1812 by Captain William Fraser. The son of a tenant farmer, he was a local man, born 12th May 1767 on the Cawdor estate in Nairn in the Scottish Highlands near Inverness. At just 15 years of age William enrolled in the British Army and was sent to India. He was promoted to captain in 1803, revisiting his childhood home to marry in 1805, finally returning to Scotland after 15 years to serve his final years in military service at Fort George on a nearby peninsula. It was during this time that he became a well-known man with connections to both the local castle and the royal family.

The area in Nairn where Captain Fraser established Brackla Distillery was no stranger to alcohol production, having previously been the home of a brewery. He and four other men leased the site for their new distillery and adjacent farmland from the Earl of Cawdor. Their enterprise lost £2,500 in the first two years as they, like so many other legitimate distillers in the early 19th century struggled to compete with illegal producers and smugglers who didn’t pay duty. Alfred Barnard, writing in The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom 1887 , comments that the Cawdor Burn which supplies Royal Brackla was used by the noted Tarrick and other smugglers ‘whose illicit stills abounded on its banks’.

This competition plagued Captain Fraser who was often heard complaining that he was surrounded by people who drank nothing but whisky yet he could not sell 100 gallons in a year. Despite, or perhaps due to these initial losses, he managed to buy out his partners and continued the business on his own.

Growing his own barley in the surrounding fields turned out to be a great foundation for his new solo business but illicit stills continued to sprout up around him. In 1821 he told a Parliamentary Commission that he was unable to sell whisky within 120 miles of Brackla because of the sheer amount of illegal producers. In light of this, Fraser choose to send the majority of his whisky to London, commenting that “probably I send more [whisky] to England than any other Highlander distiller.”

In 1826 , the Inverness Journal reported that the Brackla Distillery was shipping 900 gallons of malt spirits to houses in London and was ‘supposed to be the first ever shipped at that port by the permission of Government’. Seven years on, August 15th 1833 , Captain Fraser received an order from King William IV for some of his whisky to be shipped to St James’s Palace in London. In the same year Brackla became the first Scotch whisky ever to be awarded a royal warrant and changed its name to Royal Brackla, only one of three distilleries ever to use the prefix in its title.

With the royal seal of approval came media attention and newspapers now began publishing accolades to the whisky. London’s Morning Post described it in 1836 in glowing terms: “it is perhaps the only malt spirit which proves alike congenial to the palate and constitution of connoisseurs of every country. It is peat-flavoured, but far from rank – strong, but not fiery, and produces the most exquisite Punch or Toddy.”

When the king died in 1838 , his heir, the young Queen Victoria, renewed the royal warrant – a pattern repeated by every monarch since. Captain Fraser was now an old man, however, and a few years later, on 15th October 1846 , he died aged 78 and was buried at Cawdor church. He was described by Joseph Pacy, an excise officer at Brackla, as a tall, muscular, big framed man who was respected in the neighbourhood. His business, including the distillery and farm, now passed to his son Robert.

Robert Fraser ran things in a similar manner as his father, with the census of 1861 officially recording him as a farmer at 48-years-old, employing 17 labourers on 300 acres and a distiller in charge of 11 men.

Demand for Brackla’s whisky continued to increase, especially as bootleg distillers were slowly forced out of their illegal business. The Frasers’ whisky was, and remains, very blendable and this was exploited by numerous blenders, including Brackla’s own sales managers, Andrew Usher & Co, which was credited as the first company to create a proprietary blend of whisky in 1860 .

By 1878 , Robert was unable to continue working on both the farm and the distillery, and so passed Royal Brackla to the control of Robert Fraser & Co while he continued to work the land himself. Nine years later Alfred Barnard when he came to visit, he described the fields surrounding the distillery, its barley lofts and warehouses as well as the intimate details of the distilling process. “There are three ponds or reservoirs close to the works, and most picturesquely situated, shaded by willow trees and fed by waters of the Cawdor Burn. In this latter stream are placed the coolers, a capital arrangement when the position of the Burn will permit,” Barnard writes.

The picture Barnard paints of the distillery is very different to the one that stands today. There were farmers’ wagons and friction hoists used to move grain around and the old mash tun which he described as ‘17 feet in diameter and 6 feet deep, possessing the usual stirring gear and draining plates’. Barnard saw the washbacks when there were still eight, each holding 5,000 gallons.

An engine-house contained a horizontal engine of 13 horsepower and a donkey-engine for feeding the boiler. There was a water-wheel, pumps and a steam boiler for supplying hot water to the mash tun. When Barnard visited, the warehouse contained 2,000 barrels of aging whisky and Brackla had its own cooperage.

In 1886 , the Aberdeen Weekly Journal published news of Robert’s death. In addition to referencing his proprietorship of Brackla Distillery it went on to describe him as a director of the Highland Railway Company, the Caledonian Bank and many other important companies in the north and described him as being widely known and much respected.

In the wake of his death, over the next few decades the distillery changed ownership several times. First, in 1897 , the Brackla Distillery Company took over operations, modernising production by re-modelling the tun room and malt barns. The new company was founded by four men including a new distiller, Walter C. Newbigging. The prospectus at the time read: “Brackla whisky has long been known as one of the best Highland malt whiskies in the market. Demand for it has for years been much in excess of the supply, and in order to cope with this demand considerable additions have recently been made to the distillery.”

Like the majority of spirit producers in Great Britain, Royal Brackla was mothballed during the First World War then afterwards was purchased by John Bisset & Co Ltd of Aberdeen. This company was in turn bought by Distillers Company Ltd and transferred to its distillery arm, Scottish Malt Distillers, although it still traded under the Bisset name.

Production was halted once again during the Second World War, however Royal Brackla had a unique and active role in the war, more so than most other distilleries. It was requisitioned by the military and became R.A.F. Brackla, with the surrounding flat land used as a landing strip – though distillery operations were not disturbed. Gradually more and more hangars were built and after 1945 the land was used to scrap and store aeroplanes including some 300 Halifaxes and Warwicks. Looking around Royal Brackla today there isn’t much evidence left of this wartime interlude. Once hostilities were over and barley could once again be freed up for whisky production Brackla restarted distilling.

During 1964-66 , the distillery underwent huge changes, ceasing production in order to modernise and increase its output. The traditional method of coal-firing the stills was changed to an internal steam heated system. Four years after these changes, Brackla doubled its stills from two to four.

While the 1960s and ‘70s were kind to the whisky industry the ‘80s were less so: boom turned into bust and distilleries began falling by the wayside due to a surplus in product. Many that closed in this period would never reopen and for a while it seemed Royal Brackla faced a similar fate. In 1985 , its doors were locked and it lay silent for five years.

Under the new ownership of United Distillers, Royal Brackla resumed production in December 1990 . United had been founded in 1987 by Guinness when it purchased Distillers Company Ltd and combined it with Arthur Bell & Sons.

It was during United’s tenure, in 1994 , that a colony of bees was discovered on the site during demolition of a wall. Upon investigation it was realised that the bees had lived there happily for at least 70 years – the hive had grown to some 15 feet across. The bees were moved to an on-site purpose-built aviary where they still safely reside.

In 1997 , United Distillers Group merged with its rival Grand Metropolitan and together they formed what we know today as Diageo. The combined group was deemed to hold too great a monopoly on the whisky industry and was forced to sell certain brands off. As a result, Diageo decided to sell the entire Dewar’s whisky company, throwing in not just John Dewar and Son’s Aberfeldy distillery but Aultmore, Craigallechie and Royal Brackla. The new package, all coming under the umbrella of Dewar’s, was snatched up by Bacardi, its present owners.

Royal Brackla was originally produced as a single malt and was stocked by wine merchants up and down the country, including Henry Brett and Co. who placed an advertisement for it in The Morning Post in 1836. However, it quickly became popular with blenders and such was demand for its use in blends that distillery bottlings were rarely released. So Bacardi’s September 2015 release of three expressions: a 12 year old, 16 year old and 21 year old was met with some anticipation.

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Whisky journal, a closer look at: royal brackla distillery.

• October 13, 2021

Originally established in 1812, the Royal Brackla distillery near Nairn in the Highlands of Scotland was the first distillery to receive a Royal Warrant for its whisky.  

Located on the Cawdor Estate, the distillery was built by Captain William Fraser who – upon returning from a successful period in India – recognised that getting into the whisky industry was an industrious thing for a young man to do.  

Unfortunately, so did a number of other illegal smugglers – so much so, that Fraser began shipping most of his spirit to England (an unusual thing to do at that time) as a way to compete, since no one locally would buy his product. It proved to be his winning decision: in 1833, having established his reputation south of the border, Fraser received his first order from King William IV. Later that year, having proven his worth, the distillery was given the Royal Warrant, something it has held ever since.  

Today, the distillery is owned by John Dewar & Sons Ltd and produces nearly 4 million litres of spirit per annum. For much of its life in the 20th century, it was predominantly used for blends. In 2015 John Dewar’s parent company, Bacardi, decided to reinvigorate interest in the distillery and released a series of single malts, which are due to be updated again imminently.  

In 1833, having established his reputation south of the border, Fraser received his first order from King William IV. Later that year, having proven his worth, the distillery was given the Royal Warrant, something it has held ever since.

A Brief History

The Royal Brackla distillery may not be so well known amongst single malt aficionados but its regal stature and historical connections are well worth knowing about.

Originally established in 1812 by Captain William Fraser, the distillery near Nairn in the Highlands of Scotland made a name for itself early on for the connections it made to the Royal family.  

Fraser was from local farming stock, having been born on the Cawdor Estate in 1767. When the opportunity arose to travel overseas to work in the British Army in India, he took the opportunity to leave his homeland and began a successful career, eventually moving up to the rank of Captain after 15 years.  

Upon his return to Scotland, he joined up with a group of other successful locals to set up the Brackla Distillery (as it was known initially) on the estate where he was born. The distillery was not a massive success at first however, due to the large numbers of illegal distillers in the area who made it difficult to sell whisky locally.  

Fraser bought out his business partners and decided to change up the routine, beginning to ship his whisky to England in the 1820s. By the mid-1820s, he was shipping nearly 1000 gallons of spirit to London and it was in 1833 that he received his first order from King William IV. It clearly suited the King, as later that year, the distillery was given the Royal Warrant, something no other distillery had been given before.  

Fraser continued operating the distillery until his death in 1846 at the old age of 78 when his son Robert took over.  

The distillery had retained the Royal Warrant when Queen Victoria took over from her father, and its status continued to rise in whisky circles, being more frequently renowned for its great characteristics for blending.  

The distillery continued operating throughout the 20th century, passing through numerous hands until Scottish Malt Distillers picked it up in 1943. The company eventually expanded the site in 1965 and it wasn’t until 1985 that any interruption to the distillery’s production took place when lack of demand for whisky led to a six year closure.

In 1997, a £2 million facelift polished up the site, and it – and the other distilleries owned by John Dewar & Sons – became a part of the Bacardi stable in 1998.

Today, it produces nearly 4 million litres of spirit per annum. In 2015 Bacardi decided to reinvigorate interest in the distillery and released a series of single malts, which are due to be updated again imminently.  

The single malt whisky releases are fresh and fruity, with lots of fruitcake notes coming from the finish in European oak ex-sherry casks.  

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• Royal Brackla

Built in 1812 by Captain William Fraser of Brackla House on the estate of Cawdor Castle, The Brackla distillery was selected by King William IV to be his whisky at the Royal Court and in 1833 became first whisky distillery to be granted a Royal Warrant by order of the King. This made Royal Brackla one of only three distilleries to bear the name ‘Royal’.

The distillery passed through the Fraser family and was restructured several times until John Mitchel and James Leith of Aberdeen acquired the distillery in 1919 and sold it to John Bisset & Co Ltd in 1926. It was taken over by the Distillers Company Ltd (DCL) in 1943, which was acquired by Guinness in 1986. The distillery closed in 1985, but casks continued maturing on site. Guinness merged Distillers Company with Arthur Bell & Sons in 1987 to form United Distillers, which led to the Royal Brackla F&F release after reopening in 1991 following six years of closure.

Royal Brackla 10 Years

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Royal brackla scotch whisky distillery.

Brackla Whisky Galore 2011 7 Year Old (Duncan Taylor) - 70cl 46%

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Royal Brackla 12 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

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Distillery of the month: march/april 2024, tomintoul distillery tour.

Planet Whiskies had a fantastic trip up to the Speyside Whisky region of Scotland in February 2024 to visit Angus Dundee Distillers Tomintoul Distillery within the Cairngorms National Park. Then, after the distillery tour and tasting, which was hosted by Iain Forteath, the master blender of Tomintoul, our press group travelled and stayed the night at the recently bought country home of Tomintoul House in the Aultmore Estate (previously called Aultmore House). Planet Whiskies has made the Tomintoul Distillery, Distillery of the Month for both March/April 2024. Read more Planet Whiskies Tomintoul Distillery Tour

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Distillery of the Month: February 2024

Bushmills distillery tour.

Planet Whiskies visited the new Bushmills Distillery in Northern Ireland on the 25th and 26th of September. Read our review of the experience of Bushmills and Northern Ireland at Planet Whiskies tour of Bushmills and Northern Ireland

You can also read the whole section about Bushmills Distillery at Bushmills Distillery Information on Planet Whiskies ... So Bushmills was Planet Whiskies Distillery of the Month title for January/February 2024

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Royal brackla distillery.

Standing upon fertile farmland on the banks of the River Nairn on the Cawdor Estate (linked with Shakespeare’s Macbeth) in the Scottish Highlands, the Royal Brackla Distillery was founded by Captain William Fraser in 1812, making it one of the longest standing distilleries in the world.

In 1833 the distillery became the first Scotch whisky to ever be granted a Royal Warrant, by King William IV. Earning it the nickname the King’s Own Whisky, the Scotch produced more than lives up to that name, with a rich and opulent flavour.

In an effort to put an end to the illicit distilling occurring in the local area, Captain William Fraser took out a licence for his Brackla distillery in 1812. Although an unpopular man, his whisky was very well received.

Andrew Usher, director of Royal Brackla in 1887, used the distillery to experiment with the very first blended whiskies.  Famed for inventing the blended whisky, his distillery went on to become a key component in both Dewars, Johnnie Walker Gold and Bisset blends. 

Becoming a staple distillery within the market, the Royal Brackla was expanded to increase production in 1964.  Housing four stills and eight washbacks with a total output of 4,000,000 litres, this huge distillery continued output until 1985 when unfortunately the distillery was forced to close due to low market demand for Scotch. 

Reopened six years later in 1991, the Royal Brackla was soon sold to Bacardi, when the newly formed Diago offloaded its Dewards arm to the rum giants.

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Royal Brackla 18-Year-Old

OVERALL RATING

Whisky Review: Royal Brackla 18-Year-Old

• by Devon Lyon
• November 20, 2022

Tasting Notes:

Editor’s Note: This whisky was provided to us as a review sample by Royal Brackla. This in no way, per our editorial policies , influenced the final outcome of this review. It should also be noted that by clicking the buy link towards the bottom of this review our site receives a small referral payment which helps to support, but not influence, our editorial and other costs.

The Royal Brackla distillery is located northeast of Inverness, Scotland, the largest city in the Scottish Highlands. The distillery was founded in 1812 and a short two decades later — 1833 to be exact — was awarded a Royal Warrant by King William IV, becoming the first Scotch to be honored as such (thus the right to use the honorific “Royal” in its name). Royal Brackla changed ownership several times over the last century and was even closed for a period in the mid 1980s, before it was “resurrected” in 1990. Bacardi Limited , the world’s largest privately held spirits company, owns the Dewar’s Aberfeldy brand which, in turn, counts Royal Brackla as one of its labels.

This 18-year-old expression is the middle release in a new range of single malts from the distillery – the other two bookend at 12 and 21-year-old expressions. The whisky is finished in Palo Cortado Sherry casks and has no added caramel coloring, nor does it undergo any chill filtration . According to Royal Brackla Malt Master, Stephanie Macleod, “ The casks from this unusual Sherry were chosen to finish the 18-year-old because it brings citrus notes and builds flavours of creamy vanilla, spices and soft fruits .”

In what I found to be a somewhat underwhelming expression from a storied distillery, this single malt is pleasant, but in this case, I’m damming with faint praise. For the fairly steep suggested retail price of $299, I think it’s fair to expect a little more. If you enjoy a mellow, Sherry-finished whisky, it’s not that you won’t like this – you will – I just caution you may feel a little price-burned for what you experience.

Tasting Notes: Royal Brackla Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Vital Stats: Aged 18 years. The whisky is finished in Palo Cortado Sherry casks. Mash Bill: Malted Scottish barley from Bairds Maltsters in Inverness, Scotland. 700 ml. 46% ABV, 92 Proof. SRP $299.99

Appearance:  A light, yellow gold.

Nose : Subtle and mellow at first blush, with green apple, and a pleasant airy oakiness. The sherry’s influence is there, but it took a few good sniffs to lock it down.

Palate : I experienced a perfectly likeable combination of honey, fruit, and Sherry. I enjoyed the medium-long finish, maybe most of all, with the spice and vanilla staying strong while introducing a balanced complexity I didn’t experience up front.

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