Introduction
This evening, I am posting information on the town of Keith in the Scottish Highlands.
Keith is located about 56 miles east of Inverness and has a population of about 4800. The town has evolved from an amalgam of three earlier communities, namely Old Town, Keith and Fife Keith.
More information
The name Keith may have a Brittonic (Welsh) origin and mean wood or forest.
The core of Keith was laid out around 1750 by the Earl of Findlater.
In common with other parts of N.E. Scotland, the local dialect is Doric. This has a long history dating back to Anglo-Saxon times, maybe 1200 years ago.
One of the key visitor attractions in Keith is Strathisla Distillery. There are two other distilleries nearby, namely Strathmill and Glenkeith. All three distilleries fall within the Speyside whisky region.
Strathisla Distillery
This distillery has a history dating back to 1786.
Strathisla is one of twenty Scotch whisky distilleries in the Pernod Ricard group (France). Notable sister distilleries include Aberlour, Glenlivet and Scapa.
Capacity is 2.4 m litres p.a. most of which is used to form the core of the Chivas Regal blends.
Flagship single malt is a 12-year-old.
Distillery equipment comprises :
- 5 tonnes stainless steel mash tun.
- 10 washbacks made from Oregon pine.
- Two pairs of stills with descending line arms.
- A small amount of maturing spirit is stored on site in two racked and one dunnage warehouse.Most of the maturing spirit is stored elsewhere within the Pernod Ricard group.
A range of distillery tours are available at this distillery which is often described at Scotland’s prettiest.
Images of Keith
Video clip of Reidhaven Square
More information
The publication Visitors’ Guide to Scotland provides a wealth of information for the tourist including sections on distilleries and Scottish history. ISBN is 978-1-9161332-0-04. Also available via Kindle.