Speyside

Where it started

Scotch has a smuggling past. By the 1820s as many as 14,000 illicit stills were being confiscated across Scotland every year, and the Duke of Gordon, on whose extensive lands some of the finest illicit whisky in Scotland was made, proposed in the House of Lords that the government make legal distilling worthwhile.³ The Excise Act of 1823 followed, and many present-day distilleries stand on sites used by the smugglers.³ In 2009 "Speyside" became a protected region, defined by a list of council wards in Moray plus the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland Council.²

Where and how it's made

Speyside malts are single malt Scotch by the usual definition: only water and malted barley, pot stills, one distillery, three years in oak casks in Scotland.⁴ The SWA sums up the house style as frugal with peat and commonly matured in sherry casks.¹ Still shape matters everywhere: the SWA notes that a taller still produces a spirit that is often lighter in character.⁶

Speyside sits inside the Highland region, so a distillery there may label its whisky "Speyside" or "Highland" as it prefers.⁶ Only whisky distilled within the defined wards may use the Speyside name.²

How to taste it

Tulip glass, room temperature, a few drops of water. Look for orchard fruit and honey first, then ask whether the sweetness is vanilla (bourbon cask) or raisin (sherry cask). Pairings: shortbread, honey cake, roast pork with apples, a mild cheddar.

Styles and what the label means

• Ex-bourbon Speyside — vanilla, pear, cereal; the lighter end.
• Sherry-cask Speyside — dried fruit, nuts, Christmas cake; the richer end. cask-finishes →
• Age-stated Speyside — the number is the age of the youngest whisky in the bottle, in years.⁵ age-statements-and-nas →
• Speyside in blends — Speyside single malts can go into blended Scotch, which is single malt plus single grain.⁴ blended-whisky →
• Single malt vs blended — how the categories relate. single-malt-vs-blended →