Speyside distillery GlenAllachie extending US reach with importer appointment

GlenAllachie Distillery in Aberlour, Speyside, is extending its reach across the US with the news that it has hired ImpEx Beverages as its new exclusive importer.

The GlenAllachie Distillery was designed by William Delme-Evans and built in 1968. Picture: Simon Price.

The move appoints California-based ImpEx Beverages as the new exclusive US importer for the brands and The GlenAllachie becoming available in more states in the country.

The GlenAllachie Distillers Company said that through the new commercial relationship, its core range of single malts and MacNair’s Lum Reek blended malt will be distributed into around 20 additional states including key markets such as Texas and Colorado. ImpEx has been importing and distributing whiskies and spirits across the US since 2008.

David Keir, sales and marketing director at GlenAllachie, said: “We’re very excited about this partnership with ImpEx, who have many years of experience building brands and I’m looking forward to working with their team growing The GlenAllachie across the USA.”

Sam Filmus, president of ImpEx Beverages, noted: “We have been following The GlenAllachie for a long time and are thrilled to now be a part of its future success in the US market. The quality whiskies that Billy Walker and his team produce are a fantastic addition to our premium whisky portfolio.”

The whisky firm said the news follows a sustained period of growth and success since master blender and entrepreneur Billy Walker and his team acquired the distillery in 2017 and formed The GlenAllachie Distillers Co.

The organisation also has a number of new products in the development pipeline, including a new batch of Wood Finishes, with the US release expected to be in early 2021.

Landmark

Additionally, The GlenAllachie visitor centre this month reaches its first anniversary, having been debuted by the firm in order to celebrate last year’s Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival.

The distillery has also said that under previous owners Pernod Ricard, it was predominantly used for blending and closed to the public. The new facility meant visitors could take a tour of the distillery for the first time in over 50 years.

The company announced in March of this year that it had landed a £30 million asset-based lending package from Clydesdale Bank as it eyed further global growth.

It secured the funding boost thanks to help from the new Scottish arm of Belfast-based boutique corporate finance specialist HNH, and said it would use the facility to fund working capital and capital expenditure as it continued to develop its brand around the world.

It has also picked various awards, for example in March, Walker won the Icons of Whisky Global Master Blender/Distiller of the Year award, while the MacNair’s Lum Reek 21-year-old was named the World’s Best Blended Malt.

The GlenAllachie Distillery, sitting in a 20-acre site, was designed by William Delme-Evans – the architect behind Jura, Macduff and Tullibardine – and was built in 1968. It has four stills and, unusually, two separate spirit safes, one for each set of stills.

ImpEx Beverages was set up by drinks industry veteran Filmus, with a special emphasis on the best of what Scotland has to offer.

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