This innovative malt mill unlocks even more sweetness and flavor for a whisky

Tuesday, 14 July 2026 at 13:03

The Lomond Hills Still at InchDairnie Distillery

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Anyone visiting a distillery will often come face to face with a Porteus mill, where the grain is ground into grist, the final product made up of husks, flour (the fine meal), and grits. Multiple rollers ensure the barley is prepared in just the right proportions before it’s transferred to the mash tun to extract the sugars. This traditional method, known as milling, carried out by the rock-solid Porteus mill, is by far the most common.

Hammer mills for crushing barley

But there are also distilleries that use what’s called a hammer mill. This mill crushes the barley, and it can rightly be called innovative. The InchDairnie Distillery in Fife, founded in 2016, uses such a hammer mill, grinding the barley down to a fine powder.

This fine powder goes into a mash tun and is then pressed through a filter, the mash filter, to extract the sugars. If you were to mix this powder with water in a traditional mash tun, the filter bed at the bottom would clog and bring the process to a halt. That’s why the mash filter is essential for turning the hammer mill’s output into a high-sugar wort.

Another advantage of the hammer mill is that it can process various grains in addition to barley. The Scottish distillery is exploring this to the full. One of InchDairnie’s mottos is “more sugars, more flavor.”

Another Scottish distillery using a hammer mill and a mash filter is Teaninich, which produces single malt whisky under the Diageo umbrella. It’s used, among others, in Johnnie Walker. Teaninich’s bright wort delivers a distinctly fresh and floral character.

Whisky as a tribute to the hammer mill

There’s also a Czech whisky called Hammerhead, a tribute to the 1928 hammer mill housed in the now-closed Pradlo distillery. Bottles of Hammerhead are still available, though the older releases are becoming scarce.

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FAQ

What is a hammer mill in a distillery?
A hammer mill is a machine that grinds malt or other grains using rapidly spinning hammers. The result is an even grind for the mashing process.
Why do distilleries use a hammer mill?
A hammer mill can process large quantities of grain quickly and consistently, allowing sugars to be released efficiently during mashing.
What’s the difference between a hammer mill and a traditional malt mill?
A traditional malt mill uses rollers to crush the kernels, leaving the husks largely intact. A hammer mill grinds the grain much finer.

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