Auchroisk distillery (pronounced: Aw-THRUSK) in Speyside is another of the large but little-known modern blending workhorse distilleries that Diageo forerunners Distillers Company Limited built in the early 1970s to meet a massive anticipated demand for single malt whisky that never really arrived.
Auchroisk was constructed with modernity in mind, so it has always produced a sweetish, quite balanced, consistent and modern style of whisky. It is also usually a fairly tasty dram, unlike several other of the quiet monoliths.
Auchroisk Distillery
Founded: 1974
Stills: 4 Wash Stills, 4 Spirit Stills
Water Source: Dorie’s Well and Mulben Burn
Capacity: 5.9 Million Litres
Owners: Diageo
1974-Present: A Quiet Giant
Auchroisk was bottled under The Singleton label by United Distillers / Diageo in small batches of 1970s and 1980s vintages from the late 1980s until just after the turn of the millennium. The Singleton bottlings were discontinued and replaced with a 10-year-old Auchroisk in the Flora and Fauna range in 2001.
The Auchroisk 10-year-old Flora & Fauna is still the only ongoing official bottling from the distillery, but long-aged prestige small batches and single casks have shown up in the Diageo Special Releases and the ludicrous Prima & Ultima series in the last decade or so.
The Singleton and Flora & Fauna bottlings show very pleasant herbaceous qualities and spicy notes, both of which seem to be Auchroisk hallmarks. Independent bottlings of Auchroisk used to be relatively thin on the ground, but have proliferated since around 2010 and are now both relatively abundant and generally very good quality. Auchroisk’s lack of brand status means these indie bottlings are also usually great value.
When young, Auchroisk's single malt is typically easy-drinking, well balanced whisky. However, at older ages it is more fun, as the spirit often becomes a little unusual with magnified herbal qualities, and/or drier notes of oak and spice, muesli and porridge. Auchroisk is therefore quite an entertaining whisky to taste at greater age, even if it is not always technically perfect.
The best older bottlings of Auchroisk, if you can find them, are the long-aged official Auchroisks from Diageo's Special Releases in 2010, 2012 and 2016, and the Auchroisk 1974 28-year-old Rare Malts bottling from 2003. These venerable Auchroisks show different facets of the distillery's slightly eccentric character and are well worth seeking out.