GlenAllachie whisky has been one of the talking points of the year. Chiefly, The World Whiskies Awards 2025 named GlenAllachie’s 12 Year Old as the World’s Best Single Malt.
The Speyside whisky maker (pronounced Glen-alec-y) grabbed headlines with new releases, redevelopments, rebrands, production shifts and a steady flow of news since 2017.
Fans welcomed the former blend favourite stepping forward with a clear single malt identity. Cynics rolled their eyes at the speed of the transformation. Either way, GlenAllachie held the spotlight. So it’s time to explore how the distillery claimed that position. Why GlenAllachie was the whisky to watch in 2025.
We’re at the beautiful GlenAllachie Distillery today
A short history of Glenallachie Distillery
GlenAllachie arrived late to the Scotch world. Mackinlay-McPherson founded the distillery in 1967 to supply the booming American demand for light, fruity whisky. The team built the site at the foot of Ben Rinnes in Aberlour with S. Lothian Barclay designing the buildings and William Delme-Evans advising on the project.
The boom didn’t last. The Whisky Loch crushed demand during the 1980s. Invergordon Distillers bought the site in 1985 and mothballed it two years later. Campbell Distillers took over in 1989 and restarted production. GlenAllachie returned to the background and produced whisky for blends like Passport, 100 Pipers and Chivas Brothers.
The distillery released only the occasional single malt. Fans inside the industry still recognised the quality of the spirit. Billy Walker recognised it too. That detail matters later.
Everything changed on 2 October 2017.
Introducing Whisky Magazine Hall of Famer Billy Walker
GlenAllachie Distillery and Billy Walker
Walker grew up in Dumbarton, studied chemistry at the University of Glasgow and entered the whisky industry in 1972 at Hiram Walker & Sons. He worked across production before moving to Inver House and Burn Stewart Distillers, then launched The BenRiach Distillery Company in 2004 with partners. Benriach, Glendronach and Glenglassaugh soon followed. He sold all three to Brown-Forman in 2016.
With new capital and no distillery, Walker went for a new project. GlenAllachie matched everything he wanted: good infrastructure, a strong water supply, generous warehousing and underused potential. He bought the site with two partners and immediately applied his signature blueprint.
Walker likes to follow a clear method when he takes control of a distillery:
– Build a range of single malts.
– Shift production to favour quality over speed and tells people why that matters.
– Use his network to secure excellent casks.
– Re-racks weaker stock into stronger wood to lift it.
– Bottles everything at good strength with natural colour and no chill filtration.
– Make it look the part; this is a business after all.
– Grows distribution slowly through specialist retailers.
– Use the distillery’s relatively blank state to create a new story
– Profit.
Creating a new GlenAllachie the Walker Way
At GlenAllachie, he acted fast. The first single malt range came just nine months after he took over. He cut output by 20% so the team could lengthen fermentations. An investment was made in a heavy sherry cask strategy. He gave GlenAllachie the kind of profile that whisky fans instantly recognise.
Ask the average whisky drinker now, and they’ll describe GlenAllachie as a sherried whisky. Walker shaped that perception. Some whisky fans even credit him for fuelling the wider sherried whisky resurgence.
The rapid rise attracted a predictable wave of criticism. Some drinkers argue that the shift away from lightly peated malt weakened the distillery’s identity. Others claim Walker’s story overshadows the GlenAllachie story. They point out the jump on the distillery history page from 1967 to 2017 and complain that everything revolves around BW and AW: Before Walker and After Walker.
Billy Walker is known for sourcing quality casks and putting them to good use
Why GlenAllachie was the whisky to watch in 2025
Critics exist because success exists. Most of Walker’s decisions mirror what plenty of whisky fans would do if they owned a distillery and had the capital to make bold moves. His production changes created genuine long-term quality improvements. His short-term revitalisation strategy generated fresh value that the company reinvested immediately.
The numbers support the story. In September 2023, GlenAllachie reported a 40% rise in revenue from the previous year, bringing sales to £20.7 million. That level of growth stands out in a market where many distilleries fight to stay stable.
The Walker era didn’t act alone. GlenAllachie’s team played a huge role in shaping the whisky. But Walker’s arrival accelerated the transformation and pushed GlenAllachie into the spotlight. In 2025, whisky drinkers are asking why GlenAllachie deserves attention. They didn’t ask that question in 2017.
If you want to see exactly how GlenAllachie makes its whisky, from the water source to the wild cask experiments, you can dive into the full production deep dive here.
