Glenlivet Tasting Lodge Plans Left In Doubt

With plans to convert a bothy in the Cairngorms National Park into a Tasting Lodge, local residents have expressed strong concerns about the proposed Glenlivet Tasting Lodge.

Chivas Brothers, owner of The Glenlivet, already submitted plans for this renovation last year. In this first phase of approval, residents expressed strong concerns about this project. And the revised plans presented last month also met with great rejection. Because this place has been recognized by the Arizona-based International Dark Sky Association (IDSA) as a spot from which the black night sky can be observed and enjoyed particularly well. The nearby mountains of the Cairngorms significantly reduce the influence of artificial light on the black night sky.

According to the submitted proposal, the lodge will be used by groups of up to 10 people for tastings and will become a new attraction of The Glenlivet. The planning documents submitted by Norr Consultants on behalf of Chivas Brothers describe the conversion of the traditional Bothy as a modern and sensitive way using traditional natural materials and in a simple manner.

The Glenlivet is shrouded in legend, history, and in some cases mystery. The ‘Glen Livet’ was a stretch of Highland Scotland that would later expand to become the Speyside whisky region. The Glenlivet was part of a rich history of illicit stills in the glen. Founded by a gutsy farmer, George Smith, the distillery flourished as whisky production was legalised.

Smith’s whisky quickly gained a reputation as a ‘smooth whisky’, and won praise from figures of the day like Charles Dickens, and even the King. in the 1870s, as the quality of the whisky gained more praise, other distilleries laid claim to the Glenlivet name. The distillery eventually won the right to call itself THE Glenlivet, and it stands on the same site to this day.

Today, The Glenlivet is enjoyed the world over, and is one of Scotland’s best-selling whisky brands. Each year the picturesque distillery welcomes visitors from all over the world, who come to discover the secret of George Smith’s famous craft. After a recent expansion and refurb it is one of the most modern distilleries in Speyside with a vast Brigg’s mash tun which sends clear wort to wooden washbacks. Distillation, which is slow, takes place in two stillhouses, in seven sets of stills.

The Glenlivet was noted for producing a spirit with a ‘pineapple’ note, evidence that the floral, estery character seen today has a long history – and one which broke with the heavy, dense, rich styles prevalent at that time.

The Glenlivet Facts

• Capacity (mlpa): 10.5

• Condenser Type: Shell and tube

• Fermentation Time: 54hrs

• Grist Weight (t): 13

• Heat Source: 3 by steam heat exchanger, others by steam elements

• Malt Specification: Less than 1ppm phenols

• Malt Supplier: Boortmalt

• Mash Tun Material: Steel

• Mash Tun Size: 9.5m diameter

• Mash Tun Type: Briggs

• New-make Strength: 68-70%

• Spirit Still Charge (l): 9,500

• Spirit Still Shape: Traditional Speyside with lamp glass

• Spirit Still Size (l): 9,500

• Stills: 14 (7 wash, 7 spirit)

• Wash Still Charge (l): 15,000

• Wash Still Shape: Traditional Speyside with lamp glass

• Wash Still Size (l): 15,000

• Washback Size (l): 59,100

• Washback Type: Wood

• Washbacks: 16

• Water Source: Josie's Well

• Wort Clarity: 8-20 EBC

• Yeast Type: Mauri liquide

The Glenlivet Address

The Glenlivet Distillery

Glenlivet

Moray

AB37 9DB

United Kingdom

Website

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Visitor Opening Hours

Monday 9.30am to 5pm (Mar-Oct)

Tuesday 9.30am to 5pm (Mar-Oct)

Wednesday 9.30am to 4pm (Mar-Nov)

Thursday 9.30am to 4pm (Mar-Nov)

Friday 9.30am to 4pm (Mar-Nov)

Saturday 9.30am to 4pm (Mar-Nov)

Sunday Noon to 4pm (Mar-Nov)