Made in the highest and coldest working distillery in Scotland, with water from a loch at 2000 feet, Dalwhinnie whisky thrives on extreme conditions – creating a liquid as sweet and accessible as its highland home is remote. When it was purpose-built in 1897, the distillery was first called Strathspey. Perhaps looking to distinguish their already distinctive whisky, the owners soon changed the name to Dalwhinnie when production started in 1898. It means “Plain of Meetings” in Gaelic, a reference to the location at a junction of old drove roads, between two mountain ranges. Though beautiful and ancient, the site is not without its drawbacks: a fire in 1934 caused a four year closure, with rebuilding hampered by bitterly cold winters and twenty foot snow drifts. Like sunlight on mountain heather, no other distillery may use the water from Lochan an Doire Uaine – "Loch of the green thicket" – a gathering of pure snowmelt and rainwater high in the Drumochter Hills. That might be why Dalwhinnie Scotch is the only Highland whisky to offer a combination of clean and accessible, malty-sweet taste with a smooth and smoky warmth. It could also be why, Dalwhinnie releases its full honeyed sweetness when served chilled or over ice.