“Our future is shaped by what we do today and today reveals what we did in the past”
By Neil Urquhart, Chairman of heritage UK brand Gordon & MacPhail
From humble beginnings as a grocer in Elgin to purveyor of the finest and rarest Scotch whiskies enjoyed by enthusiasts around the world, Gordon & MacPhail has grown significantly since our family-owned UK brand was established over 130 years ago.
Heritage UK brand Gordon & MacPhail was established on the 24 May 1895 by James Gordon and John Alexander MacPhail as a family grocer and purveyor of the finest teas, coffees, groceries, meats, cheeses, wines, spirits and Scotch whisky.
These types of merchants were a feature of the era, with Johnnie Walker of Kilmarnock, Chivas Brothers of Aberdeen or Matthew Gloag and Son of Perth; all starting out as high-quality grocers, wine, spirits and whisky merchants, bottling and selling their own ‘house’ blends. These businesses focused on blended Scotch Whisky and today these ‘house’ blends are enjoyed throughout the world.
Gordon & MacPhail took a different path, choosing to specialise in single malt whisky.
Licensed bottlers
In the first year of trading, my great grandfather, John Urquhart, joined to assist with the whisky side of the business. John became well versed at negotiating with the distillers and blenders of the day. They bottled several single malts under license from distilleries that are now established household names.
He had begun to order new fillings to help the brokering business and for Gordon & MacPhail’s own label bottlings. John would become senior partner and sole owner of the business in 1915. Since this time Gordon & MacPhail has remained independent and owned by descendants of John Urquhart.
Relationships matter
Forming strong working relationships with likeminded people and businesses is of huge importance to Gordon & MacPhail. John’s son George, my grandfather, joined the business in 1933 and together father and son forged relationships with, not only distillery owners around the region, but also with sherry producers in Spain to acquire sherry for bottling and casks for sending back out to distilleries to be filled with new make spirit.
Whilst the industry focused on blended Scotch Whisky, John, and George, went against the grain. They chose to bottle whisky as single malt and leaving casks to mature for longer than was the norm.
The Father of Single Malt
Acclaimed whisky writer, Charles Maclean MBE described George Urquhart as the ‘Father of Single Malt’. Mr George as he was known by many, learnt the arcane knowledge about evaluating the quality of a whisky. Moreover, he learnt how to mature a good whisky first hand from his father.
He applied that knowledge to construct a solid whisky business, which enjoys an unrivalled position in the whisky industry today. He shrewdly forged long-term contracts for new fillings with distilleries in the post-war period. Gordon & MacPhail enjoys the benefits of the long-term approach adopted through the generations of a family owned UK brand; typified by our Generations Range of world class long aged single malts. Furthermore, our range of rare old single malts is unparallelled having won great acclaim and many awards through the years.
Growth continues
Furthermore, as John brought his son into the business, George’s children joined Gordon & MacPhail. Together, Ian, David, Michael and Rosemary, grew the company, expanding from the grocery business into wholesaling wines, spirits and whiskies throughout Scotland and the UK.
From the early years of the business, Gordon & MacPhail exported whiskies to markets in Europe – in particular Italy and France – and during the second world war to the USA. The international business grew as Gordon & MacPhail’s whiskies gained further popularity around the world. In 2009 and again in 2013 the company was awarded The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade.
Today, members of the 4th generation of the Urquhart family work for the business alongside over 150 colleagues and the company’s products are enjoyed in more than 40 International markets.
Becoming a distiller
It was always a desire for the company to become a distiller. This ambition became a reality in 1993 as the company purchased Benromach Distillery in Forres.
Further distilling capacity was added to the company’s estate in 2020 when the construction of The Cairn Distillery began. It started on the outskirts of Grantown-on-Spey, before distilling commenced in May 2022. Additionally, the Benromach range is handcrafted using traditional working practises by skilled distillers using the finest Scottish barely and pure spring water from the nearby Romach hills.
The Cairn adopts a modern approach the ancient art of whisky making, having started distillation in the spring of 2022. While we wait until future years to release a single malt from The Cairn, we have created a portfolio of blended malts, called CRN57°, to provide whisky explorers the opportunity to discover the aromas and flavours of the future. Moreover, a high-quality visitor experience opened in autumn 2022 offering tours and tastings, aiming to attract visitors from around the world.
Our core principles remain as we look to the future
An unwavering commitment to quality, long-term thinking, investment for future prosperity, and the value of relationships, are all key principles. Moreover, these have helped guide success throughout the company’s long history and they will continue to drive our business as we look to the future. This helps us focus on growing the company’s brands in key international markets.