Royal Brackla Distillery — Highland Single Malt Whisky

Royal Brackla Distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery located on the Cawdor Estate near Nairn, in the Highland region of Scotland. It was founded in 1812 and is currently owned by John Dewar & Sons, part of Bacardi. Royal Brackla holds the distinction of being the first whisky distillery ever granted a Royal Warrant, a title bestowed by King William IV in 1833 and later renewed by Queen Victoria in 1838.

History

Royal Brackla was built in 1812 by Captain William Fraser of Brackla House, who struggled in the distillery's early years against competition from illegal producers and lost significant money before the business found its footing. The distillery's fortunes changed in 1833, when King William IV granted it a Royal Warrant, making it the first Scotch whisky distillery to receive such an honour. Queen Victoria renewed the warrant in 1838, cementing the "Royal" prefix that the distillery carries to this day.

Ownership passed through several hands over the following century, including William Fraser & Co, Robert Fraser & Co, and Brackla Distillery Co Ltd, before the site was acquired by John Bisset & Co Ltd of Leith in 1926 and later absorbed into the Distillers Company Ltd in 1943. Like most Scottish distilleries, Royal Brackla closed temporarily during the Second World War due to barley restrictions, operating again from 1945. The distillery was expanded in 1970 with the addition of a second pair of stills and new racked warehouses followed in 1975. Royal Brackla closed once more in 1985 before reopening in 1991. Since 1998 it has been operated by John Dewar & Sons, a subsidiary of Bacardi, which relaunched the core range in 2019 and again with a revised sherry-cask-led lineup in 2022 under malt master Stephanie Macleod.

Quick Facts

• Region: Highland, Scotland
• Founded: 1812
• Owner: John Dewar & Sons (Bacardi)
• Status: Active
• Stills: 2 wash stills and 2 spirit stills

Core Range

Royal Brackla's core range is built around sherry-cask maturation and bottled at 46% ABV, non-chill-filtered and without added colouring. It comprises Royal Brackla 12 Years Old, finished in Oloroso sherry casks; Royal Brackla 18 Years Old, finished in Palo Cortado sherry casks; and Royal Brackla 21 Years Old, finished in a combination of Oloroso, Palo Cortado, and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks. The distillery is not open to the public for tours or tastings.