A missionary named Maernanaog, or Mo-ernin-og, had brought Christianity to the Picts of Moray during the 7th Century. A church was built just outside of Elgin, following his death in 625AD and named Lann Marnoch, the Church of St Marnoch. Over the course of time, the name ‘Lann Marnoch’ gradually became Anglicised and eventually the area was known as Longmorn. Construction began on a distillery on the site in 1893 under John Duff and Company, founders of Glenlossie in 1876.
In 1894, the build was completed and the total costs amounted to £20,000. Production began in December. John Duff bought out the other members of the group and officially founded the Longmorn Distillery in 1897. A year later he built Longmorn Number 2 next door, changing its name latterly to BenRiach. John Duff went bankrupt in 1909; the Pattison Crisis had left him reeling and he had already failed in his attempts to build distilleries in America and South Africa. The shares were acquired from the bank by James R Grant.
The Lochside distillery lacks the fame of its more illustrious neighbour, BenRiach, though it is of good size; its eight stills have a capacity of 3.5 million litres annually and have been running at full capacity since Pernod Ricard’s acquisition of previous owners Seagram in 2001. The malt whisky from Lochside remains in good standing as a blending component, it being featured in Chivas Regal.
€270Original price was: €270.€250Current price is: €250.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep chestnut brown.
Nose: Rich sherry, dried fruit, dark sweetness, polished oak, and warming spice. This nose wording is a careful style-led adaptation based on the cask type and retailer descriptions rather than a formal official distillery tasting sheet.
Palate: Sweet and fruity with layers of dried fruit, caramel, honeycomb, and toasted almonds.
Finish: Long and warming with lingering sherry richness, nutty sweetness, oak, and dark fruit depth. This finish wording is an informed adaptation from the available tasting descriptions rather than a formal official finish note.
Here was have a marvellous Longmorn single malt, matured for 23 years in American oak barrels and hogshead before being bottled up for the Secret Speyside Collection. This range was made by Chivas to celebrate some distilleries that don’t spend much time in the limelight
Colour: Deep mahogany amber. This is an inference based on the 53-year age statement and first-fill sherry butt maturation.
Nose: Sweet fruitcake aromas with a rich mature sherry character. This is supported by the official release note, while the sherry wording is reinforced by the stated cask type.
Palate: Dark fruits, concentrated richness, and a full old-style Speyside depth. The dark fruit note is supported by the official release note, while the texture wording is an inference from the age and cask style.
Finish: Long, polished, and gently oaky. The hint of oak is supported by the official release note, while the length and polish are inferences based on the whisky’s maturity and style.
Colour: Golden. This is supported by your site’s tasting notes.
Nose: Baked apple aromas lead to demerara sugar and faint dried herbs, followed by grapefruit zest, white chocolate, and freshly cut grass. This is supported by your site’s tasting notes.
Palate: Dried pineapple combines with passion fruit and crystallised violet, while lemon curd comes through alongside subtle icing sugar and a faint herbal edge. This is supported by your site’s tasting notes.
Finish: White pepper and charred oak linger with citrus fruit. This is supported by your site’s tasting notes.
