Fettercairn Distillery — Highland Single Malt Whisky

Fettercairn Distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery located in the village of Fettercairn, in the Howe of the Mearns beneath the Grampian foothills, Aberdeenshire, Highland, Scotland. It was founded in 1824 and is currently owned by Whyte & Mackay (part of Emperador/Alliance Global Group). Fettercairn is notable for its distinctive copper cooling ring fitted around the neck of its spirit stills, which is doused with cold water to increase reflux and give the spirit its signature tropical fruit character.

History

Fettercairn was founded in 1824 by Sir Alexander Ramsay of the nearby Fasque estate, who converted an existing corn mill at Nethermill into a licensed distillery — making it one of the earliest legal distilleries established in Scotland after the 1823 Excise Act. Ramsay's financial troubles forced the sale of the Fasque estate in 1829 to Sir John Gladstone, father of future four-time Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone, and the distillery remained tied to the Gladstone family for decades.

A serious fire in 1887 destroyed much of the distillery, which did not reopen until 1890. Fettercairn was mothballed in the 1920s and did not resume production until 1939, when it was acquired by Associated Scottish Distillers (Train & McIntyre). During the 1960s the distillery underwent a significant expansion, doubling its stills from two to four. Whyte & Mackay took ownership in 1973 and has run the distillery ever since, investing in a visitor centre and, from 2024 onward, marking the distillery's 200th anniversary with a refreshed core range.

Quick Facts

• Region: Highland (Eastern Highlands)
• Founded: 1824
• Owner: Whyte & Mackay (Emperador/Alliance Global Group)
• Status: Active
• Stills: 2 wash stills and 2 spirit stills, the spirit stills fitted with distinctive copper cooling rings

Core Range

Fettercairn's current core range, matured predominantly in ex-bourbon casks and bottled without chill-filtration and with natural colour, centres on age-stated single malts: the Fettercairn 12 Year Old (40% ABV), Fettercairn 16 Year Old (46.4% ABV), and older expressions including a 22 Year Old and 24 Year Old, alongside rarer releases such as 28, 40 and 50 Year Old bottlings and limited cask-strength editions.