Ian Macleod & Co Distillers Limited

Ian Macleod & Company Limited was established on 26 October 1933.

Leonard Russell Snr owned his own whisky broking company in 1936. He died in 1956.

Ian Macleod & Co Ltd was acquired by the Russell family on 18 march 1963; Peter Russell was Managing Director.

David Russell, Peter’s younger brother, joined the company in 1964 and was a Director, retiring in 2000.

Acquired the company and label called William Maxwell whose origins went back to 1796

Leonard Russell, Peter’s son, joined the company in 1989 as business development manager, and appointed marketing director in January 1993.

Ian Macleod and J & G Grant - set up as a joint venture, the bottling operation, Broxburn bottlers, in July 1994.

Peter Russell appointed Chairman and Leonard Russell appointed Managing Director in 2000.

Ian Macleod & Co Ltd changed its name to its current name, Ian Macleod Distillers Limited, following the acquisition of Glengoyne Distillery and the Langs brands in April 2003.

Acquisition of Brands
 
  * Isle Of Skye blended scotch whisky – 1963
  * King Robert range of spirits - 1968
  * London Hill Gin – 1990
  * Wincarnis Tonic Wine – 1998
  * Hedges & Butler Scotch whiskies - 1998
  * Watson's Demerara and Watson's Trawler rums – 2000
  * Glengoyne Distillery and the Langs brands - 2003
  * As we Get It

As well as the above brands which were acquired, Ian Macleod Distillers
has developed a number of other brands including

  * Chieftain’s - Single Malt Scotch Whisky Bottlings
  * Dun Bheagan - Single Malt Scotch Whisky Bottlings
  * Smokehead - Islay Style Single Malt Scotch Whisky
  * The Six Isles - Blended Malt Scotch Whisky
  * Macleod’s Regional Malts - five single malt whiskies which are representative of their particular region of origin
  * Magilligan

Principle Blended Scotch Whisky Brands

Isle of Skye Blended Scotch Whisky
‘Mellowed in Oak for Eight Years’ Origins in that most widely celebrated of Scottish Islands: Skye, home of the Clan Macleod

Premium quality 8 Years Old Blend – the recognised age of maturity for many malt whiskies and defines the age of the youngest whisky in the blend, the majority of the malts in Isle of Skye are much older.

An exceptionally smooth and mellow Scotch whisky containing a high proportion of carefully selected Island and Speyside Malts

Hedges & Butler Blended Scotch Whisky
Hedges & Butler, merchants of fine wines and spirits, established in London in 1667 during the reign of King Charles II, have built a reputation for refinement and quality and have enjoyed worldwide appeal for decades

First granted a Royal Warrant by Queen Victoria in 1837, Hedges & Butler have been an official supplier to successive monarchs both British and foreign

The Hedges & Butler Royal De Luxe is a fine blend of malt and grain whiskies selected by their Master Blender, containing a high proportion of first class malts, of 5 years and over, selected from over 15 distilleries in Scotland.

The distinctive Hedges & Butler range also includes the 12 Years Old Finest De Luxe

King Robert II Blended Scotch Whisky
is a consistent and complex blend of “first class” grain and malt whiskies.

The malts used are only selected when mature and are usually older than the malts used in competitors’ standard brands. King Robert Scotch thus tends to be much more smooth and mellow.

Winner of a Gold Medal in the 2007 IWSC category of Best Blended Scotch Whisky - No Age Stated. King Robert II saw off stiff competition from other well-known brands including Johnnie Walker Red Label, Famous Grouse Finest Scotch Whisky and J&B Rare, all of which received silver medals.

Langs Blended Scotch Whisky
The Langs name is a traditional, independent, long established brand, with the additional benefit of being granted a Royal Warrant by Her Majesty the Queen Mother in 1984.

The Langs blend has a high malt content in comparison to many of its competitors, a sign of its quality The renowned Glengoyne Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky is at the heart of the Langs blend along with a number of other top quality malts.

"Supreme, indeed; ... an object lesson in how to balance malts and grains" – Jim Murray (Whisky Expert),Whisky Bible 2004

The principal Langs products are the Langs Supreme and Langs Select Aged 12 Years blended whiskies

Rich full flavour, soft medium sweet with a long finish

Langs Select 12 Years Old recently won the Gold Medal at the prestigious
Scottish Field Magazine Deluxe Blended Scotch Whisky Merchants

Also in Ian Macleod's Portfolio:

Dunfife Blended Scotch Whisky

Dunfife is an honest-to-goodness quality mature blended Scotch Whisky

Glenshire Blended Scotch Whisky

Glenshire is a competitively priced Scotch blend, matured in oak casks and selected for a wide variety of markets across the world.

Marshal Blended Scotch Whisky

Marshal is a deluxe blend specially selected from our diverse range of premium malts and grains. Bottled in Scotland, Marshal is presented in both Standard-plus and 12 Year Old labels

Queen’s Seal Scotch Whiskies

The Queen’s Seal Range of Scotch Whiskies starts with a competitively priced, good quality matured Scotch whisky. This blend contains a range of mature, aged single malt and grain whiskies.