Glenfoyle
About the distillery (briefly)
Glenfoyle is one of those whisky names that lives on long after the distillery itself disappeared. The original facility was located near Gargunnock and closed in 1923, but the name was later reused for both blended Scotch, blended malt, and single malt. Today, Glenfoyle is especially interesting as an example of how a closed distillery name can be given new life in entirely different contexts.
History
Glenfoyle began as a distillery in the 19th century and at one point was owned by the Victorian entrepreneur James Calder. The distillery closed in 1923, but the name did not disappear. In 1960, Invergordon Distillers was established, and the company later came to be responsible for Longman Distillers, which handled the export business. In 1971, Invergordon bought the old Glenfoyle buildings and launched Glenfoyle Reserve as a 12-year export blend. In the late 1980s, an 8-year blended malt followed for the French market, and after Whyte & Mackay took over Invergordon in 1993, Glenfoyle appeared again in the early 2000s as a 17-year single malt. That release did not come from the original distillery, but was probably based on malt from Tamnavulin or Dalmore.
Whiskies
The current Glenfoyle range consists of the documented material of three historical expressions: Glenfoyle Reserve, a 12-year blended Scotch for export; an 8-year blended malt from the late 1980s; and a 17-year single malt from 2002. Together, they show how the Glenfoyle name was used across several whisky types, rather than as the live distillery’s core range.
| Whisky | Type / series | Age | Tasting profile | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glenfoyle Reserve | Blended Scotch | 12 years | A 12-year export blend launched in 1971 under Invergordon Distillers. | Discontinued; Export markets |
| Glenfoyle | Blended Malt | 8 years | An 8-year blended malt, launched in the late 1980s and sold in France. | Discontinued; France |
| Glenfoyle | Single Malt | 17 years | A 17-year single malt released in 2002 under Longman Distillers, probably based on malt from Tamnavulin or Dalmore. | Discontinued |
General tasting profile
Visit the distillery
Today, Glenfoyle is not an open visitor distillery, because the original facility is closed. There is therefore also no public programme of tours, tastings, shop, or visiting hours associated with the name.
Philosophy and craftsmanship
Glenfoyle’s name history shows a clear commercial idea: a discontinued distillery name was reused for new markets and new whisky types—first as an export blend, then as a blended malt, and later as a single malt. It is a story about brand value and about letting an old name carry new expressions.