Oban Distillery

Oban Distillery

Oban distillery is one of the oldest in Scotland - and it is physically and spiritually at the heart of Oban: the "Gateway to the Isles". In effect, the town grew up around the distillery and since its foundation in 1794 it has played an important role in local life.Distillery owners and managers to the present day have embraced this tradition of community involvement and hospitality -
a tradition that came naturally to John and Hugh Stevenson, founders not only of the distillery at Oban but of the town itself.

They were local men - their mother had come from Port Appin upon the death of their father, a stone mason. Both learned the stonemason's craft. Hugh opened a shop selling whisky and later took over slate quarries. His brother became a farmer, architect and builder.

Together they established a boat building yard and a tannery and, in the 1790s a brewery, which had become Oban distillery by 1794. Two further generations of Stevensons continued the family's business interests in Oban. Hugh's son, Thomas, who had been farming in Buenos Aires, returned and purchased the distillery and the slate quarries from his father and uncle's trustees.

Later he built the Caledonian Hotel, but, alas, he ran into financial difficulties through supporting his brother in a printing business in Edinburgh. He attempted to satisfy his creditors by supplying them with slates and whisky. His son, John, who had been living in Peru, but who returned and took over the running of the distillery in 1830, helped Thomas. He managed Oban until shortly before his death in 1869, when it passed out of the family.

In 1883 J. Walter Higgin bought the distillery. Between 1890 and 1894 he dismantled and rebuilt it bit by bit, in order to keep it in production - such was the demand for Oban's malt. He carefully replicated the famously small stills and other traditional features in order to preserve the quality of the whisky.

The distillery buildings and their internal arrangements are substantially the same today as they were following Higgin's refurbishment. Until recently only very exceptional malts were bottled and sold as 'singles'. By contrast, Oban™ has been enjoyed as a single malt since the 1880s.

Interestingly, during the refurbishment in the 1890s, a remnant of Oban Bay's ancient beginnings was revealed when a cave (which has now been resealed) containing Mesolithic human remains was discovered behind the distillery.

Oban distillery is currently working on a new visitor experience where visitors to the distillery will explore exactly what happens in the process to produce Oban single malt's unique spirit character. Together the guide and the visitor will explore each part of the whisky making process, to discover which flavours come from which parts of the process.

During the tour visitors will be able to nose the new make spirit, and be given the oppertunity to enjoy some cask strength Oban straight from the cask.

Senior Site Manager: Kenny Gray

Opening Times

February
Monday to Friday, 12.30pm - 4pm.

March
Monday to Friday, 10am - 5pm.

Easter to June
Monday to Saturday, 9.30am - 5pm.

July to September
Monday to Friday, 9.30am - 7.30pm.
Saturday, 9.30am - 5pm & Sunday, 12 noon - 5pm.

October
Monday to Saturday, 9.30am - 5pm.

November
Monday to Friday, 10am - 5pm.

December
Monday to Friday, 12.30pm - 4pm.
(Closed between Christmas and New Year.)

Last Tour is ONE hour before closing.

Admission
Adults: £5.00; This charge includes a discount voucher, which is redeemable in the distillery shop towards the purchase of a 750ml bottle of single malt whisky. Admission is free to all Friends of the Classic Malts.

Getting There
In Stafford Street, Oban, opposite the bay, close to the North Pier. To reach Oban, take the A85 fron Crainlarich or the A816 from Lochgilphead.

Parking / Reception
No parking at the distillery, however, there is shuttle service from the hill on the left of the A85, parking behind the station and on the pier close to the distillery. Oban can be busy in the summer. Reception is business-like but the Tour Collection room contains an excellent visual history of Oban and the distillery's founding family.

Contact Us
Oban Distillery
Oban Argyll
PA34 5NH Scotland
Telephone: +44 (0) 1631 572002
Visitors Center +44 (0) 1631 572002
Fax: +44 (0) 1631 572006
Email: Oban Distillery

More Oban Information...

Courtesy of Oban