Glenturret Distillery: Scotland's Oldest Working Distillery, Guarded for 24 Years by a Cat

Glenturret's claim to be Scotland's oldest working distillery rests on records going back to 1763, though illicit distillers reportedly worked the site, then known as Hosh, from as early as 1717. Littlemill and Strathisla both contest the title, and the truth is that "oldest" in Scotch whisky usually depends on which closures and reopenings you choose to count. What isn't in dispute is Glenturret's most famous employee: Towser, a tortoiseshell cat credited with catching an estimated 28,899 mice between 1963 and 1987, a record recognised by the Guinness Book of Records and commemorated with a bronze statue at the visitor centre today.

Glenturret at a glance

History of Glenturret

The Drummond family owned the site originally, under the name Hosh, before John McCallum took over in 1845. Thomas Stewart renamed it Glenturret in 1875. The distillery closed after the First World War and again during the Depression and American Prohibition, before James Fairlie revived it in 1957. Cointreau bought it in 1981, Highland Distillers acquired it in 1990, and the Edrington Group took over Highland Distillers in 1999. In 2018 Glenturret was put on the market and acquired by the Lalique Group together with one of its major shareholders, and in November 2024 the distillery announced it would stop using peat in production from 2025 onward.

How Glenturret makes its whisky

Glenturret runs a single pair of stills, one wash and one spirit, with a modest capacity of 340,000 litres a year, small enough to keep the distillery feeling closer to its historic scale than a modern industrial site. Water comes from Loch Turret, unusually soft due to the surrounding granite-diorite geology. Whisky critic Philip Hills once described it as "entirely pleasing and agreeable," noting floral notes such as elderflower in the spirit, and the core range runs from Triple Wood through 7 and 10 Year Old Peat Smoked expressions to 12 and 15 Year Old bottlings, with older releases appearing periodically.

Glenturret and independent bottlers

Independent bottlers have released Glenturret under its own name, but a significant share of the distillery's spirit over the years has gone out instead under the Ruadh Maor name, used for peated whisky distilled at Glenturret but bottled separately from the core Glenturret range. The Single Cask's own holdings fall into exactly this category.

Glenturret and The Single Cask

We hold six genuine Ruadh Maor casks, all distilled at Glenturret: cask 152A (10 years old), cask 152B (10 years old, ex-sherry), cask 153 (8 years old, peated), cask 77 (13 years old), cask 773 (13 years old) and cask 158 (12 years old). That is one of the deepest single-distillery holdings in our current stock, giving a genuinely wide window into how this whisky develops across different ages and cask types.

Plan a bottling inspired by Glenturret

Glenturret's survival through repeated closures over two and a half centuries, kept going as much by patient ownership as by a famously effective cat, is the kind of long view that makes for a compelling bottling story. If you want to build your own around one of our genuine Ruadh Maor casks, start with our whisky casks available page, or read about buying a whisky cask and the four steps to bottling your own whisky. For something under your own name, our private label whisky service covers that end to end. For more on the Highland region, see our guides to Aberfeldy and Edradour.

We hold a wide range of casks to sell to independent bottlers and private customers, drawn from many different distilleries, finished in a variety of wood types from sherry and port casks to bourbon and rum, with real differences in yeast and production style from one distillery to the next. If you are an independent bottler looking for stock, or you have always wanted a cask of your own, talk to us about what we currently hold in the warehouse, including our six Ruadh Maor casks from Glenturret.

If you have questions about any of this, or about Glenturret in particular, our contact page is the fastest way to reach us.

Frequently asked questions

Is Glenturret really Scotland's oldest distillery?

It claims the title based on records going back to 1763, with the site active informally since about 1717. Littlemill and Strathisla both contest the claim.

Who owns Glenturret now?

The Lalique Group, since 2018, together with one of its major shareholders.

Who was Towser the cat?

Glenturret's resident mouser from 1963 to 1987, credited with catching an estimated 28,899 mice and recognised by the Guinness Book of Records. A bronze statue commemorates her at the visitor centre.

Is Glenturret peated?

It has made peated whisky, including under the Ruadh Maor name, but announced in November 2024 that it would stop using peat in production from 2025.

What is Ruadh Maor?

A brand name used for peated whisky distilled at Glenturret but bottled separately from the core Glenturret range.

Does The Single Cask sell a Glenturret cask?

Yes, six genuine Ruadh Maor casks distilled at Glenturret: 152A, 152B, 153, 77, 773 and 158.