Memorable Splendour
For over 180 years, The Glen Grant has been creating exceptional and intriguing Speyside Single Malt Scotch whiskies that celebrate the innovation which has defined its lasting legacy.
James 'The Major'
Grant
In Speyside, so defined and dominated by its own landscape and culture, the uncompromising, charismatic James ‘The Major’ Grant truly stood apart from the rest.
Insatiable fascination. Charming eccentricity. And an unwavering obsession with the pursuit of splendour. A visionary to the last, James ‘The Major’ Grant inherited our distillery in 1872, bringing with him an affinity for the natural world – and a marked aversion to the ordinary. While journeying the globe, from Southern Africa to the peaks of Himalayas, he was inspired to create a splendid garden, unlike any other in Speyside.
His foresight inspired him to collect exotic fruits and flora along the way, which would grow into an intriguing collection in the distillery’s grounds – and a singular whisky. He built vast greenhouses, where, immersed in the fragrances and flavours, he found inspiration for the uncommon character and complexity that still defines The Glen Grant whisky. And, by engineering tall, slender pot stills to capture the finest vapours, combined with unique water-cooling purifiers, he revolutionised the craft of Single Malt Scotch whisky-making.
OUR STORY SO FAR...
CURIOSITY DISTILLED
SINCE 1840
The Glen Grant distillery
Brothers John and James Grant founded The Glen Grant distillery in 1840, a landmark moment in the history of Scotch whisky. Their boundless interest in industrial and technological advancements led to the construction of the northern railway.
The creation of the railway
The Grants have always been at the forefront of cutting edge innovation. James Grant was the founder of the Morayshire Railway Company, which ran trains from the port of Lossiemouth to Elgin. The creation of the railway made it much easier to build important supply lines and led to other distillery construction in the area. In 1851, one of the locomotives was named Glen Grant in his honour.
Electric lighting
Electric lighting was introduced by John and James Grant.
‘The Major’
Taken over by ‘The Major’ Grant, The Glen Grant becomes one of the first Scottish distilleries to generate electricity. ‘The Major’ also doubled the size of the distillery, introducing tall, slender pot stills and water-cooling purifiers, bringing The Glen Grant whiskies unique character to life.
Victorian Gardens
The Major established our famous Victorian Garden in 1886 to showcase the eclectic plants and exotic fruits he gathered on his journeys across the globe. This sylvan escape has 22 acres of orchards, meadows, and gorges, including the original dram pavilion built by James Grant himself.
Dennis Malcolm
Dennis Malcolm, who would become our Master Distiller, was born on the distillery grounds and would soon become the third generation of his family to work at The Glen Grant.
apprenticeship
Dennis began his five-year apprenticeship as a cooper (barrel maker) at the distillery, kickstarting a lifelong career in the Scotch whisky industry.
Master Distiller
Dennis Malcolm is appointed Master Distiller. Dennis continues to oversee the high standards and traditions of the Grant family and its descendants.
50th anniversary
Master Distiller Dennis celebrated the 50th anniversary of his first day working at The Glen Grant distillery.
His Royal Highness
His Royal Highness, King Charles, opened The Glen Grant’s new bottling hall.
60th anniversary
Master Distiller Dennis Malcolm’s 60th anniversary — or his diamond year — working in the Scotch whisky industry.
Our new Master Distiller GREIG STABLES
After over 30 years in the whisky industry, Greig Stables is appointed as Master Distiller.
Garden of
Splendours
Just like our whisky, laid down for decades and cared for inside the walls of the stone warehouse, The Garden of Splendours invites you on an aromatic, evocative journey, in the footsteps of James ‘The Major’ Grant.
A testament to its founder’s eccentricity and relentlessly inquiring mind, the Garden of Splendours was established in 1886 to display the flowers and exotic fruits gathered by James ‘The Major’ Grant on his global travels.
Today, this cornucopia of natural majesty boasts a vast garden of orchards, meadows, and gorges, including the original dram pavilion, built by The Major himself. Signalling – and celebrating – the turning of the seasons, birches, apples, and sweetly scented roses grow amongst the ponds and glades, in sync with the cycles of nature. To this day, one of his prize specimens, the Himalayan Blue Poppy, still grows. A rare and vivid burst of blue that against all odds, still thrives in the garden. Perfectly embodying The Major’s dedication to going above and beyond, it now proudly adorns our bottle. A living symbol of the passion you’ll discover in every expression of The Glen Grant.
A story decades in the making
By combining tradition and innovation, our Master Distiller protects the rare character of The Glen Grant whisky.