Rosebank is a name that has played a huge part in the history of Scotch whisky production, particularly when it comes it the Lowlands where it has built a reputation as the “King of the Lowlands".
Rosebank was founded in 1840 by James Rankine on the maltings site of the old Camelon distillery. His son, Robert, acquired the Camelon distillery, which was then demolished to rebuild the Rosebank distillery in 1968. In 1914, Rosebank became one of the founder members of the Scottish Malt Distillers, which later folded and became Distillers Co. Ltd (DCL) in 1925. DCL were famous for blends and almost all of the Rosebank produce was used for these. In 1988 an 8 year old single malt was released, but the writing was sadly already on the wall at this point…
Rosebank distillery was mothballed in 1993 and remained in this state until it was sold to British Waterways in 2002. It was rumoured that discussions were had, circa 2009, to redevelop and reopen Rosebank distillery, though these plans had soon been scuppered when apparent thieves broke in and stole copper equipment ...Though a resurrection was confirmed by Ian Macleod Distillers in 2017 and we all eagerly await the fruits of that labour. The first cask at the new Rosebank distillery was filled in July 2023, so hopefully just a year or so away, and you can expect demand to be very high!
There has been some incredible expressions of Rosebank single malt, and because of the limited supply of these and the insanely high quality they have remained in high demand with virtually everything being released by independent bottlers. One of the earliest distillates of note is the Rosebank 1938 that was bottled by Robert Stewart & Sons in the 1960s. Signatory Vintage are responsible for some stunning releases; such as the Rosebank 1965 28yo and the Rosebank 1967 25yo (both 93pts on WhiskyFun).
From Cadenhead’s 150th Anniversary bottlings there is the Rosebank 1980 11yo Authentic Collection (92pts WF), whilst the Scotch Malt Whisky Society have had some huge hits on their hands with the Rosebank 1979 SMWS 25.2 and the Rosebank 1978 13yo SMWS 25.4 (94pts WF). Other brilliant indie bottlings include the Rosebank 20yo Zenith Italia Import (93pts WF), Rosebank 1981 22yo Rare Malts, Rosebank 1973 28yo Old Malt Cask (93pts WF) and the Rosebank 34yo George Strachan 1970s Bottling.
These are just a few examples of the brilliance that has been produced already, which is why we wait with bated breath for the new malt in the coming years. Can the dizzying heights be reproduced, or even bettered? We can’t wait to find out!
Brief Timeline of Rosebank Key Events: -
- 1817: A distillery named Rosebank becomes operational
- 1840: Rosebank distillery is founded by James Rankine
- 1914: Rosebank becomes a founding member of Scottish Malt Distillers
- 1925: The distillery forms part of DCL
- 1993: The Rosebank distillery is mothballed
- 2002: Site is sold to British Waterways
- 2017: Ian Macleod Distillers announces plans to reopen Rosebank distillery
- 2023: The first cask at the new Rosebank is filled
Click here to see all of our Rosebank single malts range.