A Visit to Blair Athol Distillery in Pitlochry

Pitlochry is often seen as the gateway to Cairngorms National Park - home to the famed Whisky Trail and one of Scotland's whisky hotspots. Unsurprisingly, whisky plays a significant role in the region, with the distillery undoubtedly one of Pitlochry's biggest attractions.

Visitors can get an inside look at the Blair Athol Distillery, learning about each step of whisky production, a long and meticulously precise process, but one that yields delicious results.

It all starts with grain, or in the case of malt whisky, barley, which is first dampened and partially germinated. This process ensures the barley's starches aren't converted into sugars. The germination process is then halted through heat, drying the barley. For smoky whiskies, the barley is placed atop peat during this phase, giving it that iconic smoky taste.

Next, the barley is ground and placed in a large tank where hot water (sourced from the local stream flowing through the complex) is added and stirred, resulting in a sort-of mash. Once ready, it's time for fermentation.

Yeast is added to the mash, consuming the sugars and converting them to alcohol. This is done in massive barrels and takes two to four days, depending on the specific flavor profile the distillery wants to achieve. The end product is the so-called 'wash' which bears a strong resemblance to beer.

While the goal isn't to produce the other 'golden beverage,' it's time for the process that gives the building its name: distillation. The wash is transferred into large, copper stills for heating. Infrared heaters quickly turn the room where this process takes place into a sauna, even with all the windows open and typically cool Scottish weather outside.

The heat causes the alcohol to boil and evaporate, rising into the neck of the still. It then cools down, condensing back into a liquid and flowing into the next still for repeat distillation. The more times distillation happens, the softer the whisky's 'raw edge' becomes.

hat's why many Irish whiskies, typically 'triple distilled', have a smoother character. In contrast, most Scottish whiskies are distilled twice.

Throughout the entire process, the taste and alcohol content of the spirit produced changes constantly. The spirit is therefore diverted to a separate tank at the start (head) and end (tails) of the process for possible redistillation to achieve the desired flavor.

The job of switching between 'suitable' spirits is done manually, not with fancy software or tech, but by one person: the master distiller. It's through tasting that they determine when to make the switch, making their role phenomenally important at a distillery, a position that requires years of intense training.

Consistency is key in whisky making. Each bottle must taste the same and cannot vary from batch to batch. According to the guide at Blair Athol Distillery, their neighbors operate a separate still.

The shape and size of stills vary widely, impacting the spirit's taste. When new stills were installed at the neighboring distillery, one was dented. Therefore, every time a still is replaced, it is intentionally hammered to reproduce the same dent to ensure consistent flavor.

The whisky's flavor isn't just born from the spirit, but also from the cask it's stored in. Once the batch is ready, the liquid is poured into wooden casks to absorb the cask's character, a process with a significant amount of loss, the 'angel's share'.

Pelas-tan-so, for example, a barrel has been maturing at the Blair Athol Distillery for over sixty years to be used in a special release of a Johnny Walker Blue Label. Over the years so much has evaporated that less than twenty percent of the original liquid remains in the cask. No wonder some whiskies come with a hefty price tag.

Storing all that whisky is not cheap. Even the 'regular' bottles of Blair Athol come from casks that have been ageing for twelve years. The last sight we were treated to at the distillery is one that won't be easily forgotten: a dark storage facility filled with rows upon rows of whisky casks, stretching as far as the eye can see into the darkness.