Description: With great hesitation I give the [current] Glenmorangie Distillery Tour the rating of 'most disappointing' of the tours I have yet taken. It's not a bad tour - nor is it a bad example of a Scottish whisky distillery. Quite the opposite of that, in fact, with it's position just north of Tain and views out over the Dornach Firth, it's one of the more beautiful distilleries - and with the history to go with it.

Glenmorangie, however, ranks as one of the more disappointing for a depressingly recent reason. After moving to Scotland it took some time to come to enjoy the 'water of life' as the Scots like to refer to whisky - though it was a simple bottle of 12 year old Glenmorangie that finally turned the tide. Peaty isle whiskies and strong speysides had up until then left me cold - but on a particularly cold winter day I was shared a dram of one of the most well-known, and well regarded whiskies on the market today and suddenly I saw what all the fuss was about. Though - to the whisky conoissour it may yet be a bit prosaic (and true you can buy it in any off license and most grocery stores) - however things that are well known are often that way for a reason, and until very recently I have always recommended Glenmorangie as the whisky to have if you're new to the drink. Golden and beautifully smoth - yet full of rich flavour, this was a beautiful, beautiful beginner's whisky - and one to be savoured even by those who have long loved the drink.

As such - the Glenmorangie Distillery was one of my more anticipated tours. However - I seem to have left it a few years to late. This tour is not with out it's positives, though - and I will mention them at first, in particular for the visitor who is more interested in the history and experience of visiting a renowned Scotttish distillery than in eclectic whisky sampling.

As I mentioned above - the distillery is very impressive. Beautifully kept in a stunning location - you'll have no shortage of great photos of this place. Inside is everything you would expect of a large distillery tour and shop and you will no doubt be impressed by their facilities. Another huge plus is that the location is incredibly easy to reach. As a northern highland whisky, the distillery is just about 30 minutes north of Inverness on the A9 - this could not be an easier drive (and easy on the eyes as well). The distillery is literally just off the A9 - it would be hard to miss it, if you go over the bridge to Dornoch you've gone too far. (Allow approx 4 hours if you are coming from Edinburgh or Glasgow).

Another plus is that it's open all year round, and though they do charge for distillery tours, the cost is only £2.50 per person which you can redeem when you purchase something in their gift shop.

The downside - for me - was mainly down to a change in ownership. In 2005 the one of the most well known Scottish whiskys in the world was sold to the French company Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton. That's right - of the handbags. And though you hope that a change in ownership of such a long standing product with such profound local roots would not change much - I am sad to say that this is not the case with Glenmorangie. The product itself has changed drastically in the last few years. LVMH have put their 'high end' hand to the entire operation - and even the bottles now have a look of some rich, golden champagne rather than Scotch. But most disappointing of all - is that the whisky itself is losing it's character. In a process as long and entrenched in legacy as whisky making, this change will not come quickly - but every step is so vital that it only takes a few to change a long standing flavour and aroma. The changes are in the wind and this is a whisky which went from being my favourite to one i am hesitatnt to buy.

I can not compare the tour itself to pre-sale times unfortunately, but I can say the tour was disappointing as well. We showed up the last time at a time they should have been open and were all but told they couldn't be bothered. No one was there but us, true, but surely they should have jumped at the chance to give a tour and make the almost inevitable sale which follows. In stead we were just told that the staff were otherwise employed and asked us to just pick which whisky we would like to sample. A difficult thing to do when you haven't hear about the process or what notes are in each bottle (so we picked the obvious oldest one) and were left alone to drink it in a somewhat stuffy room while the staff cleaned the register. We were barely noticed again, and even the whisky shop now looks more like a luxury car showroom than a whisky shop. We left with out buying anything.

So if you find them on a day they aren't being lazy - the tour may yet be a good one. But after so many years of admiring this whisky, I have found my heart has been led to those still made by Scotsmen.
Close