Banff 1976 Gordon & MacPhail bottled 2005 Connoisseurs Choice (Brown)

The Banff distillery was located in the east of Speyside in the Highlands of Scotland. It was built in 1824 by Major James McKilligan before coming into the hands of the Simpson family. The distillery was closed in 1863 by James Simpson Junior, who opened a new distillery in Inverboyndie, closer to the railway line. 1877 saw the first of a long series of fires that would plague Banff’‘s history. In 1932, in a difficult economic climate, the Simpson family sold the distillery to Scottish Malt Distillers Limited (SMD), a subsidiary of Distillers Company Limited (DCL) that managed its malt distilleries, but it remained closed until World War Two. In 1941, it was bombed by the Luftwaffe and production only began again after the war, before once again coming ceasing due to fire in 1959. Like many other distilleries, it closed in 1983 and, when it was being demolished in 1991, the last warehouse caught fire, bringing to a close the beautiful story of Banff. In the DCL era, Banff mainly produced whisky for blends, although a few bottlings of the malt can be found, particularly in the Rare Malts collection or with independent bottlers. Fans appreciate its fruity, oily and slightly smoky character.

A small batch Banff distilled in 1976 and bottled in 2005 by the independent bottlers Gordon & MacPhail. This company was founded in Elgin in 1895 by James Gordon and John Alexander Macphail. At the time, it was a delicatessen and wine merchant. In 1915 John Alexander MacPhail retired, and a new partner joined: John Urquhart. His son George joined the business in 1933, a few years after the death of James Gordon in a car accident. They worked with several major distilleries from Speyside, where they amassed considerable stocks. Gordon & MacPhail was also licensed to bottle whiskies for distilleries such as Glen Grant, Linkwood, Mortlach, Macallan and Glenlivet. The business flourished in the 1970s with distributors in several countries, as well as with the sales of casks to several Italian bottlers in selections that would become legendary. Today, Gordon & MacPhail is still run by the Urquhart family in its original building and is one of the most iconic bottlers in the industry with an abundance of whiskies – some of which are very old and extremely rare. Gordon & MacPhail is in total control of the entire maturation process. They have also owned the Benromach distillery since 1993.