Built in 1898, by the Teacher family of the famed Teacher’s blended whisky, the Ardmore Distillery was the Glasgow blender’s solely owned production facility, used for both trading stock and a component in their own blends. Built in the Victorian Era, other blending houses such as Dewar’s and Johnnie Walker also followed trend by opening their own production facilities around the same time. The site of the Ardmore Distillery in Kennethmont was strategically selected by the Teacher family for its proximity to barley, peat and water and because of Kennethmont’s location on the Great North of Scotland Railway. The major module of transportation during the Victorian Age, the Great North, connected Aberdeen to Inverness, moving both people and whisky across the country. Today, Ardmore is owned by Beam Suntory and is still primarily found in Teacher’s blended whisky.

Located on the outskirts of the Highlands, nearly in the Speyside region, Ardmore is known for its peated Highland malt, a rarity. Ardmore was one of the last distilleries to retain coal fires under its stills and when they were finally retired in 2001, the team spent months re-creating the hot spots in the stills by purposely kinking the new steam coils to ensure the signature Ardmore flavor was carried on. Ardmore’s signature heavily peated flavor is balanced with fragrances of fruit orchards. As the Ardmore is still a significant component of the Teacher’s blended whiskies, it is not often seen as a single malt, yet it’s managed to develop a small yet committed fan base who seek out indie bottlings.