A small batch Royal Brackla 2014 10-year-old Highland single malt whisky bottled in 2025 without colouring or chill filtration as #17 in the Pitlochry bottler’s superb Small Batch Editions series.
This 10-year-old Royal Brackla 2014 was finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry hogsheads and bottled up at the Small Batch Editions standard punchy but not too hefty drinking strength of 48.2%. Brackla is a large but often-overlooked distillery - this one looks like terrific bang for your buck.
Brackla’s graceful character aligns beautifully with the richness of PX, resulting in a balanced interplay of fruity charm, honeyed spice, and subtle sherry warmth.
Royal Brackla is called Royal Brackla for a reason. Captain William Fraser of Brackla House on the estate of Cawdor Castle originally founded the distillery in 1812. The distillery started distilling that same year. The distillery was the first to be granted a royal warrant by King William IV in 1835. Only few other distilleries have ever been given a royal warrant. This distinction gave the distillery leverage over the rest of the market. From this point on, the distillery was allowed to use the addition "Royal" in its name and was also known as "The King's own Whisky".
In 1852, the distillery was taken over by Robert Fraser & Company. They operated the distillery until 1898, at which point the original buildings were demolished and the entire site rebuilt, and the Royal Brackla Distillery Company was founded. In 1919, the distillery changed hands again when John Mitchell and James Leict from Aberdeen acquired the site. In 1926, John Bisset & Company took over the entire distillery. In 1943, SMD took over the distillery when they acquired John Bisset and Company. In 1970, the number of stills was increased from 2 to 4.
The site was mothballed in 1985, and production resumed six years later in 1991. The site underwent a massive renovation in 1997, with more than 2 million Pound Sterling being spent. One year later, the brand Dewar's as well as the distillery had to be sold due to an obligations of the European watchdog. Bacardi bought the distillery and the Dewar's brand from Diageo.
About Signatory Vintage
Perthshire-based independent bottler and owner of Edradour distillery. Signatory is an independent bottler with a vigorous release policy, and usually some 50 different single malt expressions are available at any one time. Whiskies are bottled across a number of ranges, including the Un-chill Filtered Collection, the Cask Strength Collection and the Single Grain Collection.
Signatory bottling, bonding and office facilities are located in a building adjacent to Edradour distillery, near Pitlochry in Perthshire, which the company also owns. Signatory Vintage Scotch Whisky was established in 1988 by Andrew Symington, who had previously managed the prestigious Prestonfield House Hotel in Edinburgh. The first cask bottled by Symington was a 1968 Sherry-cask-matured Glenlivet.
Signatory was initially based in the Newhaven area of Edinburgh, where a bottling plant was developed, but in 2002 the firm acquired Edradour distillery from Pernod Ricard, and subsequently moved all of its operations north to the picturesque Perthshire location.
A new bottling plant and a warehousing complex were constructed, strictly in keeping with the vernacular architectural style which prevails at the much-visited and diminutive former farm distillery.
