Pittyvaich distillery

Pittyvaich was a short lived Single malt whisky distillery founded in 1974 by Arthur Bell & Sons. The distillery started operating in 1975. Conceived as a sister company to the Dufftown distillery it was to produce malt whisky for blend production. In 1993 the business was closed again and the buildings were demolished in 2002.

Pittyvaich Distillery

The Pittyvaich whisky distillery was located in Dufftown, a small town in the north-east of the Highlands where the Fiddich and Dullan Water rivers meet. The city has around 1500 inhabitants. Special features of the city are the Mortlach Church on the outskirts, the origins of which lie in the 6th century and are one of the oldest churches in Scotland. There is also a Pictic cross in the neighboring cemetery. At the end of the 12th century, Balvenie Castle was built and the settlement at its feet was named Balvenie. In 1817, James Duff, the 4th Earl of Fife, founded the city of Dufftown as accommodation for returning soldiers and named it after himself.

The Pittyvaich distillery has little exciting to tell in its short history. Production started in 1975 and in 1993 it was over. The distillery was built in the immediate vicinity of the Dufftown distillery, making it one of the many distilleries in the secret Scottish whisky capital, Dufftown.

There are only four original bottlings from the distillery, the most famous being the 12 year old Pittyvaich in the Flora & Fauna series (launched in 1991 but now discontinued), three special releases editions at 20, 25 and 27 respectively. In addition to the original bottlings rare independent bottler editions are occasionally released. Today, the whiskies of this distillery are few and far between.

Production

Two sets of stills, identical to those at the neighboring Dufftown distillery were used for production. The Pittyvaich Single Malt Scotch Whisky then matured both in American oak bourbon barrels and in European oak sherry barrels. The Pittyvaich distillery is no longer active today, but some of its long-stored whiskys are still in circulation. They are launched by Diageo. The high-quality Pittyvaich 25 Years Single Malt Scotch Whisky is one of the bottlings that should not be missed as a collector and fan of Speyside Malt. As a special release, it joins the younger quality products from independent bottlers.

History

Pittyvaich, was a whisky distillery in Dufftown, Banffshire, Moray, Scotland. The distillery was founded in 1974 by Arthur Bell & Sons. It was conceived as a sister company to the Dufftown distillery and was to produce malt whisky for the production of blends. Pittyvaich became an experimental distillery in which new methods and techniques were carried out only a few months a year before the operation had to be stopped completely in 1993. The buildings were demolished in 2002. Independent bottlings from Signatory and Cadenhead’s have become very rare. A single malt from Pittyvaich is therefore a piece of whisky history.

Pittyvaich factsheet

Can I tour Pittyvaich?

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