'The most complex of whiskies, and the most elegant'
(Michael Jackson)
The River Spey
The River Spey rises in the western Monadhliath Mountains, fifteen miles west of Newtonmore, and meanders east and north, sundering the Monadhliath range from the Cairngorms, and then flowing through the fertile Laigh o'Moray and the district called Strathspey until it meets the Moray Firth at Spey Bay. It is the fastest flowing river in Britain, and famous for its salmon fishing.
Forty-six distilleries
This is among the loveliest scenery in Scotland. It is also the principal whisky-producing region: Speyside has within it some forty-six operating distilleries - over half the total number in the entire country - and among them some of the most famous names.
Perhaps surprisingly, very few Speyside distilleries actually draw their water from the Spey itself, or from its famous tributary rivers, the Fiddich, Lossie and Dullan. They get it from adjacent springs and rivulets.
"It would be no true or, at least, no very discerning lover of whisky who could enter this almost sacred zone without awe."
(Aeneas MacDonald, 1930)
Speyside Malts' Characteristics
Speysides are essentially sweet whiskies. They have little peaty character (although some have a whiff of smoke) and their salient characteristic is estery - typically, this aroma is compared to pear-drops or solvent (nail varnish remover, particularly). They can be highly perfumed: scents of carnations, roses, violets, apples, bananas, cream soda and lemonade have all been discovered in Speyside malts.
They take maturation in sherry-wood well and can be rich and full bodied, medium and light-bodied.
Top Dressings
Blenders used to classify Highland malt whiskies into four classes, Top, lst, 2nd and 3rd, according to the contribution they made to their blends. The ratings varied slightly from blender to blender but were broadly similar. A typical blender's classification from 1974 lists only a dozen as 'Top Class'. All of them are Speysides:
· Aultmore
· Benrinnes
· Cragganmore
· Glen Elgin
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· Glen Grant
· Glenlivet
· Glenlossie
· Glenrothes
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· Linkwood
· Longmorn
· Macallan
· Mortlach
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