Teaninich

Teaninich is located in the Alness area, near the Munro estate. It was formerly called Ferindonald, derived from the Gaelic Fearainne Domnuill, meaning 'Donald's land'—associated with the clan chief who received land from Malcolm II (1005-1034) to defend against Nordic invaders. The name 'Teaninich' comes from the Gaelic Taigh an Aonaich, meaning 'house on the hill.' Hugh Munro owned Teaninich House and built the distillery in 1817 with the support of local lairds, who were determined to eradicate widespread illegal distillation in the county and provide farmers with a legitimate outlet for growing and selling barley. This measure only partially achieved their goal: three of the four legal distilleries established in Ross-shire at that time failed. The distillery's rights were inherited by General John Munro, a long-time resident of India, who leased the site to Robert Pattison (1850) and later to John McGilchrist Ross (1869). General Munro was a model landlord. During the 'Hungry Forties,' he not only financially assisted his impoverished tenants but also 'alleviated their distress through daily personal visits, by providing medicines, meal, and other foodstuffs, and fuel for warming during the severe winter months' (New Statistical Account, 1845). Ross relinquished the lease in 1895, and it was taken over by Elgin whisky merchants Munro & Cameron. They expanded and renovated Teaninich distillery in 1899, and in 1904 Innes Cameron became sole proprietor. Upon his death in 1932, his trustees sold the distillery to S.M.D. (D.C.L.). Due to wartime restrictions on barley supplies, the distillery closed from 1939 to 1946, but has maintained continuous production throughout its long history (except for 1985-1990). The distillery's stillhouse was rebuilt in 1962, adding a second pair of stills—a pair of 'tiny stills'—bringing the total to four stills, all converted to internal heating. In 1970, a completely new stillhouse with six stills was built alongside the original, which was standard for S.M.D. distilleries at the time (see Linkwood, Glendullan, Brora/Clynelish, Glenlossie/Mannochmore). It was simply called Side A; three years later the company rebuilt the original distillery's (Side B) milling, mashing, and fermentation rooms, and in 1975 built a draff plant within the distillery. Teaninich was then S.M.D.'s largest distillery, with a capacity of 6 million litres of pure alcohol (LPA). Sides A and B operated separately, with their spirits mixed into casks before maturation. Side B was mothballed in 1984 and retired in 1999. Between 2014-2015, the distillery's capacity increased from 6 million to 10 million LPA with the installation of new mashing and distillation equipment, including a larger mash tun and mash filter, ten new washbacks, three new wash stills, and converting three existing wash stills to spirit stills. The group also announced plans to build a completely new distillery at a nearby location, which would increase Teaninich's capacity to 13 million LPA, but this project was shelved in October 2014 due to market downturns in China and South America.

Benrinnes distillery's story begins with Hugh Munro, the 'Blind General' who lost his sight in the Napoleonic Wars at age 24. Later, Innes Cameron—who held stakes in Benrinnes, Linkwood, and Tamdhu—chaired the Malt Distillers Association. But its modern distinction is unique: since 2000, Benrinnes has been one of only two Scotch distilleries (alongside InchDairnie) using a hammer mill for grinding and a mash filter press instead of a traditional mash tun. This brewing technology requires three press cycles (two hours each) to fill a single fermenter, producing a distinctively clean, refined spirit.