List of historic whisky distilleries

This article is a list of historic whisky distilleries and distillery companies. It includes some that are still operating and some that are not, and includes those claiming to be the oldest or to have other historically important characteristics.

In Ireland

• Green Distillery (1796–1870s), notable for its use of an early continuous distillation apparatus, invented by the distillery's then co-owner, Joseph Shee
• Kilbeggan Distillery, formerly the Brusna Distillery and Locke's Distillery, claimed as the oldest licensed distillery, referencing a licence issued in 1757, although it was closed in 1954; production resumed at the site in 2007, but with different ownership and different production facilities, as all the equipment of the prior distillery had been sold off and destroyed during the closure (during which the site had been converted to pig farm and a construction equipment business)
• Old Bushmills Distillery, sometimes claimed to be the oldest, based on the notion of the oldest recorded grant of a licence to distil granted to someone in the area in 1608; the current Bushmills distillery site and company date to 1784; the distillery was rebuilt after a fire in 1885

In Scotland

• Adelphi Distillery, in operation between approximately 1826 and 1907
• Ardbeg Distillery, producing whisky since 1798, began commercial production in 1815[1]
• Bowmore Distillery, said to have been established in 1779[2]
• Ballechin distillery, operated between 1810 and 1927[1]
• Glen Garioch Distillery, dating to 1797[1]
• Glenturret Distillery, officially established in 1775, but the distillery had previously been under the control of illicit distillers, who sought to avoid paying taxes to England, since 1717, leading to claims of being the oldest distillery in Scotland

In the United States

• A. Smith Bowman Distillery, founded in 1934, operated as the only legal distillery in post-Prohibition Virginia until the 1950s; closed and moved to a different location in 1988
• Atherton Whiskey was a pre-prohibition brand of Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey first produced by J M Atherton & Co. First bottled and marketed in 1867, it was once the largest whiskey making operation in Kentucky
• Barton Distillery, originally established in 1879
• Bomberger's Distillery, later known as the Michter's Distillery, with some history to 1753; closed 1989, believed to be the oldest remaining distillery building in the United States
• Brown–Forman, a company established in 1870 with the novel idea of selling top-grade whiskey in sealed glass bottles, now one of the largest American-owned companies in the spirits and wine business
• Buffalo Trace Distillery, formerly known as the George T. Stagg Distillery and the Old Fire Copper (O.F.C.) Distillery, with some history to between 1775 and 1812
• Four Roses, a brand name claimed to date from the 1860s or 1888 with a distillery built in 1910
• George Washington's Distillery

In Canada

• Hiram Walker Distillery, founded in 1858 just across the Detroit River from Detroit in Windsor, Ontario, established there to avoid local Prohibition regulations in the Detroit area – heavily profited from the illicit trade during Prohibition in the United States
• Gooderham and Worts Limited, founded in 1832 in Toronto. It became one of the worlds largest distilleries. Merged with Hiram Walker Distillery (see above) in 1926. It was sold to Allied Lyons in 1987. Still produces whiskey in Windsor. It is responsible for the distillery district in Toronto.[3]

In Japan

• Yamazaki Distillery, the oldest commercial whiskey distillery in Japan, established in 1923 by Shinjiro Torii and Masataka Taketsuru of the Kotobukiya company, which was renamed Suntory in 1963
• Yoichi Distillery, established in 1934 by Masataka Taketsuru when founding the Nikka Whisky Distilling company

In England

These whisky distilleries closed in the 19th century, with the Lea Valley distillery being the last to cease production.[5]

• Lea Valley Distillery, Stratford, Essex (established in the late 19th century)
• Bank Hall Distillery, Liverpool
• Bristol Distillery, Bristol (established in the 17th century)
• Vauxhall Distillery in Vauxhall, Liverpool (established in 1781) – produced grain whisky

See also

• List of whisky brands
• Outline of whisky