Lochside distillery

Lochside Distillery stands on the edge of Montrose in Angus, where a brewery first rose in 1781. The red-brick buildings once belonged to James Deuchar & Sons, a Newcastle brewer who ran the site through the 19th century. In 1957 Macnab Distilleries bought the brewery and turned it into a distillery making both malt and grain whisky. Joseph W. Hobbs, owner of Ben Nevis Distillery, was among the new owners. The blended whisky brand Sandy Macnab appeared at this time and was shipped widely. Spanish company DYC acquired Macnab Distilleries in 1973, then Allied Distillers took over in the 1990s. Allied became part of Allied Domecq, later owned by Pernod Ricard. Production used a cast-iron mash tun, open stainless washbacks and four stills—two wash and two spirit—plus grain stills that rarely ran. Most spirit went to Spain for DYC whisky, while the rest aged ten years for single malt or the Sandy Macnab blend. Today the old distillery is gone, replaced by modern houses along the lochside. A few casks of Lochside single malt survive in private hands, and the Sandy Macnab brand lives on under Pernod Ricard. The site offers quiet walks where warehouses once stood, with views across the water to the hills beyond.