In the 1839 book 'History of Brechin', it is written: 'The residential areas of Brechin were once filled with groups of illicit distillers, transporting whisky from the Grampian Highlands to the lowland regions, and Brechin itself relied on these 'merchants' to supply 'mountain dew'. Now the situation has reversed. The town has gained a distillery of considerable scale, called North Port Distillery, (supplying) purer spirits than the illicit whisky of before... (Whisky) is the main drink of all classes (in Brechin).'