"Rome was built on seven hills but Dufftown’s built on seven stills."
Dufftown Rhyme
Dufftown has become synonymous with Scotch Whisky, its famous "seven stills" having risen to nine since the rhyme was composed. It has been said that Dufftown raises more capital for the Government per head of population than any other place in the UK. Dufftown owes its existence to the distilleries which have put it on the map.
The most striking building in Dufftown is the clock tower. Built in 1839, it originally served as the Dufftown town jail. Its clock was brought to Dufftown from Banff and it is known as “the Clock That Hanged MacPherson”. More correctly it was Lord Braco, MacPherson’s greatest enemy, who hanged him.
A notorious character, MacPherson had received a pardon which was on its way but Lord Braco put the clock forward to ensure that it didn’t arrive in time. This historic building now houses the Dufftown Tourist Information Centre. The oldest building to be found in Dufftown is Mortlach Church. A church has probably stood on this site ever since the 6th century.
Nowhere else in Scotland can boast such a high concentration of distilleries. The oldest distillery in Dufftown was Mortlach which was established in 1823. A former employee, William Grant left Mortlach to found Glenfiddich and 40 years ago it was the first distillery to open its doors to the public. View of Mortlach distillery from The Elms
The Glenfiddich site now encompasses the Convalmore Distillery which was founded in 1894 but finally closed its doors in 1985. William Grant also founded Balvenie Distillery which is one of the very few distilleries left that still grows its own barley and has its own malting loor. Parkmore Distillery was established in Dufftown in 1894 but has not
produced whisky since 1931. Just upstream from Parkmore is Glendullan Distillery. Originally used for making blends it has recently become available as a single malt. Dufftown Distillery, built in 1896, now boasts 6 stills and the new Kininvie Distillery is also making a name for itself.
Dufftown is also home to other malty attractions. The Whisky Museum which was started by a group of Dufftown volunteers in 1997, details the history of whisky and the role it has played in the development of Dufftown (The Whisky Museum is currently searching for a new home and is not open to the public at the moment). There’s no better place to buy whisky than the whisky capital of the world and Dufftown wouldn’t be Dufftown without its specialist whisky shop. The staff here will help you choose your single malt and also help you plan your own personal whisky trail in both the Dufftown area and greater Scotland.
Dufftown boasts a great 18 hole golf course and visitors are welcome at the Dufftown Golf Club. Dufftown is surrounded by countryside providing great walks for hikers. The Speyside Way can be accessed from Dufftown as a spur runs from Craigellachie to Dufftown. The nearby Spey River is well known for salmon fishing.
Dufftown holds two annual Whisky Festivals; the Spring Spirit of Speyside at the end of April and the Autumn Speyside Festival in September. On the last Saturday in July, Dufftown also comes to life with the Dufftown Highland Games. Don’t miss it!
For more information on Dufftown go to:
www.dufftown.co.uk