Dallas Dhu – A Victorian Distillery Coming Back to Life
A few hours.
The route
Dallas Dhu, on the southern edge of Forres, made whisky from 1899 until 1983, then stood silent as a museum, almost untouched.
Aceo, who now run it, are bringing it back to life as a working distillery, and a guided tour with a dram shows you how whisky was made here. A late breakfast on the High Street comes first.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The nearest of ours is Culbin Edge in Brodie, 4 miles away. Sleeps 4; next free Mon 9 Nov to Wed 11 Nov.
Book a tour time on the distillery's website: from £15 with one dram, £20 with three or £25 with four.
The day
Forres
A slow start in the middle of Forres, then an afternoon among the copper stills and malting floors of an old Speyside distillery, with fresh air on the old railway line to finish.
About three and a half hours
Cafe 1496
Brunch
Start with a late breakfast at Cafe 1496, the white-fronted café at 79 High Street, where breakfast is on the menu all day. It runs from pancakes with maple syrup and eggs benedict to the full house, with Cullen skink and toasties for anyone who'd rather have lunch, and the coffee is roasted locally. Park in the High Street car park, one of the council's free car parks in Forres. Food is served until 3pm, and to book a table, ring 01309 358120.
About 5 min by car
Dallas Dhu Distillery
It's six minutes' drive to Dallas Dhu on Mannachie Road, where the public car park is by the ramp up to the Dava Way. Little has changed here since it closed in 1983: the mash tun, six washbacks, spirit safe and a pair of copper stills are all still in place. Charles Doig's pagoda-style vent above the kiln draws the peat smoke away. Choose a tour time on the distillery's website: the tour from £15 takes about 45 minutes with one dram, and the longer ones pour three or four. Anyone driving should ask the distillery on 01309 251480 about taking their dram away. Under-18s are welcome, with no alcohol. The shop sells New Era, a whisky made to mark the revival, only here. Afterwards, the Dava Way, the old railway line from Forres to Grantown-on-Spey, passes the distillery for a stroll along the old trackbed.
If it rains
The tour and the shop are under a roof, and so is breakfast: on a wet day, leave out the stroll on the Dava Way.
Where to stay
Photographs by Bob and Angela Williams via Google