Speyside whisky

Speyside, around the River Spey in north-east Scotland, has more working distilleries than any other Scotch region. Its malts are mostly unpeated, and sherry casks are common but not universal. This page lists Speyside bottles in stock at the UK retailers we check, including Glenfiddich, Balvenie, Glenlivet, Macallan, Aberlour and GlenAllachie.

Speyside is a protected region under the Scotch Whisky Regulations and sits geographically within the Highlands. For an overview of all five protected regions and how modern styles overlap, see our guide to Scotland’s whisky regions. Our region tags come from the producer’s distillery; an independent bottling from an undisclosed distillery may not have one.

  • 657 bottles in stock
  • 51 distilleries
  • From £23.99, median £99.95
Map of Scotland's whisky regions, with Speyside highlighted
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Questions

What is the cheapest Speyside whisky?
The cheapest Speyside whisky is Glen Moray Elgin Classic Single Malt Whisky (40% ABV, 70cl), at £23.99 from Master of Malt. That is £28.94 delivered to the UK mainland for one bottle. Next cheapest: Speyburn 10 Year Old (£25.00) and Glen Moray Sherry Cask Finish - Elgin Classic Single Malt Whisky (£25.95).
How much does Speyside whisky cost?
Speyside whisky costs from £23.99 to £24,500.00, with a median of £99.95 for a full-size bottle. The dearest is Glen Grant 1948 (cask 1365) King Charles III Coronation Release (Gordo Single Malt Whisky.
What is the oldest Speyside whisky you can buy?
Why is Speyside home to so many distilleries?
It had barley, clean water and remote glens where illicit distillers could work out of sight of the excise. When the Excise Act of 1823 made licensed distilling practical, George Smith licensed Glenlivet in 1824, and many others followed. Speyside now has the highest concentration of distilleries in Scotland.
Where exactly is Speyside, legally?
The Scotch Whisky Regulations 2009 define Speyside as eight Moray Council wards (Buckie, Elgin City North, Elgin City South, Fochabers Lhanbryde, Forres, Heldon and Laich, Keith and Cullen, and Speyside Glenlivet) plus the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of Highland Council. Only whisky distilled inside those wards can be called Speyside.
Why do some distilleries add Glenlivet to their names?
Because Glenlivet was once such a famous name that other Speyside distilleries borrowed it. After a court case in the 1880s, only the Smith family’s distillery could call itself The Glenlivet, but ten others were allowed to use a “-Glenlivet” suffix. Two such names still appear in the Scotch Whisky Regulations: Glen Moray-Glenlivet and Dufftown-Glenlivet.
Are Speyside whiskies peated?
Mostly not, but there are exceptions. Benromach’s standard range uses lightly peated malt, Benriach makes peated bottlings such as The Smoky Twelve, and Glenfiddich Fire & Cane is a peated release from an otherwise unpeated distillery.