The Glenlivet, Whisky distillery in Moray, Scotland
The Glenlivet is a distillery in the Scottish county of Moray that uses fourteen copper pot stills and draws its water from the springs of Josie's Well. The site sits in the Highlands and produces single malt whisky there, which matures in oak casks.
George Smith founded the distillery in 1824 and received the first official license for whisky production in Scotland under the new tax law of 1823. Smith's decision to work legally brought him hostility from illicit distillers who had dominated the trade until then.
The name comes from the Gaelic word for smooth valley and refers to the hillside landscape along the Livet River, where spring water flows through rocky ground. The distillery still shows copper stills and warehouses where visitors can see the slow maturation process and the colors of different casks.
The distillery offers guided tours with tastings that should be booked in advance, as places are limited. Tours run from Tuesday through Saturday and lead through the production halls and the warehouses with their oak casks.
The distillery once sent barley seeds to the International Space Station to test how weightlessness might affect germination. This research aimed to understand whether extreme conditions would change the taste of the eventual whisky.
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