Aberlour Distillery

Aberlour is the sherried Speyside malt that people reach for when they want richness without the price of the very big names. It stands in the small town of Aberlour, on the River Spey in the heart of Speyside, and it has been making whisky on the same site since 1879. Its A’bunadh, a cask strength whisky matured in sherry casks, is one of the best-known bottles in the category. If you want to see how Speyside sherry maturation tastes at its best, this is a good place to start.

Who owns Aberlour?

Aberlour is owned by Chivas Brothers, the Scotch whisky arm of the French drinks group Pernod Ricard. Pernod Ricard took over the distillery in the 1970s, and it later became part of Chivas Brothers when that company was formed. It sits alongside other Speyside names such as Glenlivet, Strathisla and Longmorn.

For the wider picture of which company owns which whisky, see our guide to who owns what in whisky.

The history of Aberlour Distillery

Whisky had been made around Aberlour for decades before the distillery we know today. It was founded in 1879 by James Fleming, a local grain merchant who had earlier worked at Dailuaine, after a fire destroyed an earlier distillery on the site. Fleming built the business up into one of the best-known names in Speyside and was also a prominent figure in the town.

The distillery changed hands several times in the 20th century and was bought by Pernod Ricard’s predecessor in the 1970s. A visitor centre opened in the early 2000s, and in 2022 Chivas Brothers announced a large investment in Aberlour and nearby Miltonduff, including a new still house, to roughly double the distillery’s capacity. To place Aberlour among its neighbours, read why Speyside has so many distilleries.

How Aberlour is made

Aberlour makes its whisky from malted barley, water and yeast. The malt is essentially unpeated, so the flavour comes from the spirit and the casks, not from smoke. The distillery stands where the Lour Burn meets the Spey, in the shadow of Ben Rinnes, and its water is drawn from a spring on the hill. For the wider context, see how whisky is made.

What Aberlour is known for is sherry. Much of its spirit is matured in ex-sherry casks, often alongside ex-bourbon wood, which gives the dried fruit, spice and nutty notes of the range. Our note on sherry cask versus bourbon cask explains the difference.

Why is Aberlour so rich?

Sherry casks do most of the work. They add dried fruit, toffee, orange peel and baking spice to a spirit that is already fruity and malty, and the stronger releases are bottled without chill filtration, which keeps more of the texture. That is why Aberlour is such a popular first step into sherried whisky.

The Aberlour range

The range is built around sherry maturation and age statements. The main expressions are:

• 12 Year Old Double Cask, the core bottle and the best place to start, matured in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks. Read our Aberlour 12 Double Cask review.
• 16 Year Old Double Cask and 18 Year Old, older, richer and more rounded bottlings, with more sherry influence.
• A’bunadh, the cask strength flagship, bottled in numbered batches from Oloroso sherry casks, with a strength that changes with each batch. Read our Aberlour A’bunadh review, and see our guide to cask strength whisky.
• Limited and travel retail releases, which change from year to year. See our note on age statements versus NAS.

For comparison, read Macallan vs Glenfarclas and Glenfiddich vs Glenlivet, which cover the other big Speyside names, and see our pages on Glenfarclas and Glenfiddich.

How to drink Aberlour

The 12 Year Old is easy neat, with a splash of water, and it works well as an after-dinner dram. A’bunadh needs water, because of the strength, and a few drops open up the sherry and spice. A sherried malt like this also makes a good Old Fashioned. If you are new to tasting, our guide to how to taste whisky is a good starting point.

Visiting Aberlour Distillery in Speyside

The distillery is on the edge of the town of Aberlour, on the Spey, and it has been open to visitors since the early 2000s. The visitor centre runs tours and tastings, and the town itself is a pleasant base for exploring other Speyside distilleries. Check the distillery website for the current tour list and opening hours, and book ahead in summer and during the Speyside Whisky Festival in May.

Aberlour: quick answers