Royal Brackla’s new make is high-toned and vibrant, shedding the smoky character that once defined it during Captain Fraser’s time. The distillery setup is meticulously designed to enhance ester formation, with long fermentation periods, upward-angled lyne arms, and extended copper interaction to encourage plentiful reflux. This process yields a fresh, perfumed fruitiness and clean acidity, allowing the whisky to balance the bold flavors imparted by ex-Sherry cask maturation, a signature style chosen by Dewar’s for its single malt offerings.
The distillery has been producing whisky since 1817 when Captain William Fraser established Brackla to counteract the thriving local moonshining trade. Despite Fraser’s unpopularity, his whisky garnered acclaim, and in 1835, Brackla became the first Scotch whisky to receive a Royal Warrant from King William IV, earning the title “Royal Brackla” and the nickname “The King’s Own Whisky.”
The Fraser family’s connection to the distillery ended in 1879, after which Royal Brackla became heavily associated with blending. Andrew Usher, credited with creating the first commercial blend, served as an agent for the distillery and joined its board in 1887. Ownership passed through various hands, including Mitchell & Leict and John Bisset & Co, before becoming part of DCL in 1943.
DCL increased production in 1964, but industry overproduction forced the distillery to close from 1985 to 1991. In 1995, Royal Brackla was sold to Bacardi-Martini along with Dewar’s during Diageo’s formation. For many years, it quietly supplied malt for blending until Dewar’s introduced a five-expression single malt range in 2015 as part of The Last Great Malts initiative.
In 2019, Dewar’s announced a refreshed Royal Brackla lineup featuring 12-, 18-, and 21-year-old whiskies, bottled at 46% ABV without caramel coloring. This revamped range was set to launch in spring 2020, marking a new chapter for the distillery.
