The Famous Grouse

The Famous Grouse is a brand of blended Scotch whisky, first produced by Matthew Gloag & Son in 1896, and currently produced and owned by The Edrington Group.[4] The single malt whiskies used in The Famous Grouse blend include the Edrington-owned Highland Park and The Macallan.[5] Its emblem is the red grouse, Scotland's national game bird.[4]

The Famous Grouse
TypeBlended whisky
ManufacturerEdrington Group
DistributorEdrington Group
Beam Suntory[1][2][3]
Country of originScotland
Introduced1896
Alcohol by volume40%
VariantsThe Black Grouse
Snow Grouse
Related productsHighland Park
The Macallan
WebsiteThe Famous Grouse

It has been the highest selling whisky brand in Scotland since 1980.[4] As a standard price blended Scotch whisky, its main competitors in its home market are Bell's, Teacher's and Grant's. The majority of its sales in the United Kingdom are during the Christmas period.[6]

History
Advertising promoting Matthew Gloag & Son promoting import of port from Douro, c. 1850, Red Lion Public House, Culross

Matthew Gloag was a grocer and wine merchant at 22 Atholl Street, Perth, Scotland.[7] Gloag originally specialised on imported wines and ports from France, Spain and Portugal. When Queen Victoria visited Perth in 1842, he was invited to supply the wines for the royal banquet.

In 1860, his son, William Gloag, took over the company. Following the Great French Wine Blight the company began to look at creating its own blended whiskies around 1875. In 1896, William's nephew, Matthew Gloag (1850-1912), took over the family business. He created a new blended brand called The Grouse in 1896. at this time the company was still operating from the grandfather's premises but had expanded to occupy adjacent shops, jointly covering 20 to 26 Atholl Street.[8][9] In 1905 the limited company of Matthew Gloag & son was formed and the Grouse was renamed The Famous Grouse in the same year.[4] Matthew Gloag's daughter Phillippa first designed the label's grouse icon.[4] Only at this point did the company move to new purpose-built premises on Kinnoull Street.[10]

In 1970, Matthew Gloag & Son, owned by the Gloag family, was sold to Highland Distillers, after the death of the chairman, Matthew Frederick Gloag.[4] The marketing and distributive power of the company saw Famous Grouse become the highest selling Scotch in Scotland by 1980 and the second highest selling in the United Kingdom.[4] From the 1980s the brand began to be exported overseas, where it now sells over 2 million cases annually. In 1984 The Famous Grouse was awarded the Royal Warrant.[4]

Characteristics

The standard blend is 40% ABV.[5]

The blend goes through a marrying process for up to six months at 46% ABV. It is known that in order to call a whisky "Blended Scotch", the youngest malt in the blend needs to be matured for at least three years. However, they do not state how old the youngest malt in their blend is. Rather, they optimize the standard taste by blending casks of varying ages among batches. The aging is done in oak casks.[11]

Variants
A bottle of Black Grouse

In 2007 a peated special version of The Famous Grouse called The Black Grouse developed for the Swedish market was released. The packaging displays a black grouse in place of the usual red grouse. The following year a special version, meant for chilling, was released called The Snow Grouse. The packaging features a ptarmigan.[12]

In 2011, The Naked Grouse was launched as its premium product. Initially as a high-end blended whisky, in 2017 it was turned into blended malt whisky.[13]

Promotions and sponsorships

The Famous Grouse has focussed its television advertising around the Christmas period since 1996.[14]

The Famous Grouse was the primary sponsor of the Perth-based football team St Johnstone between 1986 and 1989 and again between 1991 and 1998. It also sponsored the Scotland national rugby union team from 1990 until 2007, and was 'The Official Spirit of Scottish Rugby' from 2013 for three years.[15]

In May 2014, Famous Grouse was named the official whisky of the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

References
  1. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-51280544
  2. https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/2020/01/suntory-acquires-10-stake-in-macallan-owner/
  3. https://www.insider.co.uk/news/suntory-takes-10-stake-macallan-21377687
  4. Whisky Opus. Dorling Kindersley Limited. 2012. p. 101. ISBN 978-1-4093-7580-7.
  5. "Famous For A Reason". The Famous Grouse. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  6. "Famous Grouse gears up for Xmas ad campaign". Morning Advertiser. 15 November 2007. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  7. Perth Post Office Directory 1850
  8. Perth Post Office Directory 1900
  9. p111&227
  10. Perth Post Office Directory 1905
  11. "Famous For A Reason" (PDF). The Famous Grouse. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2015-12-21.
  12. Archived June 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  13. "The Naked Grouse becomes a blended malt | Scotch Whisky". scotchwhisky.com.
  14. "Maxxium accelerates into summer". Talking Retail. 21 June 2012. Retrieved 17 November 2012.
  15. "News". Scottish Rugby Union.

Bibliography
  • Buxton, Ian (2012). The Famous Grouse A Whisky Companion: Heritage, History, Recipes and Drinks. London: Ebury Press. ISBN 9780091944742.
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