The Famous Grouse

Famous Grouse

Hello, and welcome to my little passion project in which I aim to combine my love of travelling and  my love of whisky by looking at those whiskies you can find whilst on your travels.  Why am I doing this? it’s simply because I enjoy it and I hope that it might help others find that deep pleasure and appreciation when having a whisky on their travels.  So far I have been heavily influenced by the whiskies I have found whilst onboard Celebrity Cruise Ships, that is the cruise line I have sailed on the most - But this time I am going to look elsewhere.  Both Marrella and Ambassador Cruise Ships offer a different selection of drinks than Celebrity - the former being UK relevant rather than USA led. This time I am going to look at a whisky that I have mentioned in previous episodes but I know it deserves its own spot.  The whisky is Famous Grouse and just the name alone is worth talking about.  

On the whole it could be said that single malts tend to be named after the distillery, which is related to its location.  Even if the specific expression has a name it is still usually linked to the place - Corryvreckan, for example, one of my all time favourites, is known as Ardbeg’s Corryvreckan.  There are exceptions, of course, but these are usually when others get involved, such as when a supermarket wants to have its own label without naming the distillery.  There are advantages to this - it helps prevent the distillery undercutting its own sales, it gives the supermarket a sense of uniqueness and it also allows the supermarket to change the distillery to an alternative one whilst still using the same branding.  On the other hand blends are often known by a person’s name - Bells, Teachers, Johnnie Walker, Dewar’s etc, again, there are exceptions such as Cutty Sark as featured in a previous episode.  

The reason I raise this is that a name says a lot, it can be a reflection on how the brands began.  The single malts began from a specific place and would be referred to as that name.  This could become quite heated when more than one distillery operates within the same area - see the Glenlivet episode for an example.  Many blends began in a completely different way.  Their beginnings were not at the distillery but within a merchants premises - sometimes this could be as small as a single shop.  As a result it was the reputation of the shop owner that enabled the customer to trust the contents of the bottle.  This means that the shopkeeper had to try and maintain standards and conformity at a time when supplies may not be as reliable as they would like.  The way around this would have been to mix the casks together, this could be through a natural process.  In an age when people would bring their own vessels to be filled from a tapped cask it would be understandable for the cask to get reused or topped up, creating a form of blending. Or they might get creative and purposely make a reproducible blend and by doing so they were able to smooth out differences and anomalies and manage to create a profile that met the requirements of their customers.  But these shopkeepers were not distillers so how did they know what to do?  The answer is in the term ‘transferable skills’.  Shopkeepers were not just doing this with whisky - they had experience in mixing and blending other things, such as wine and tea. They had acquired a sense of smell and taste and an awareness of preference that put them in the best position to produce a good blend suited to customer needs - and if they couldn’t then they were not successful and so the brand would not carry on - it is a matter of survival of the fittest.

The origin of Famous Grouse comes from such a venture, a small but trusted grocers shop that moved into Atholl Street in Perth in 1807 and was owned by John Brown.  Then a Matthew Gloag (I say ‘A’ Matthew Gloag as there are going to be a few mentioned) married John’s daughter (Margaret). Margaret took over the business in 1824 and she obtained a licence to sell snuff, wines and spirits in 1831.  Meanwhile Matthew had been managing the cellar of the local Sheriff and had developed experience in dealing and handling wines.  Around 30 years experience of doing this as well as the influences of tea mixing etc all came together when he eventually took control of the family business.  One should not underestimate the skills he would have acquired nor influential people he would have met.  When Queen Victoria visited Perth it was Matthew who they came to to source the wines for the events.  With a rising trend in whisky, the ability to blend malt and grain whiskies and a trusted position of good reputation it would make perfect sense to make his own brand.  This happened in 1897 but it was not the same Matthew. He had died in 1860, neither was it his son, William, who became a shareholder in the North British Distillery, but it was his grandson - who was also called Matthew.  This Matthew took control in 1896 and, using his impressive combination of skills that he had been developing prior to this began to produced blended whiskies.  The first was  ‘The Brig o Perth’, which is no longer available, and the following year, 1897 he introduced the ‘Grouse’.

When I first began the malted muse podcast, all those years ago - I had the idea of trying to match whisky with experiences and stories.  One of my favourite questions was ‘which whisky goes best with a bonfire, a walk, a day at the beach etc?’  In a way Matthew was having a similar thought.  I bottled a 15 year old Tobermory single cask at cask strength and labelled it as ‘the Homecalling’ because I attached the experience of being called home at the end of work or from travel, by the prospect of a glass of it.  Matthew wanted a whisky that he felt matched the experience of a day in the wonderful countryside around him - and so he named it after the well known and iconic bird that inhabited it - the grouse.  This also fitted well with the intention for it to appeal to those engaged with certain ‘sporting’ activities. In a way this could be ironic - I mentioned earlier that a lot of blended whiskies are named after a person and this one isn’t, however, the name Gloag, when from Irish roots could mean ‘Famous’, but this doesn’t work when the origin is Scottish, when it can mean ‘Gloom or darkness’.  The whisky was named to reflect the pleasure Matthew got from the countryside around him and it was his daughter, Phillipa Gloag (known affectionately as ‘The Woman behind the wings’ and the inspiration for a limited edition bottling) who actually did the original drawing that went on the label.

The timeline of ‘Grouse’ whisky is where some confusion can be found.  According to many sources, including the brands own website, the Grouse became very popular to the point that it officially changed its name to the ‘Famous Grouse’ in 1905. HOWEVER, in Charles Maclean’s book ‘Famous for a Reason’ the story of Famous Grouse, he states that the Famous Grouse was introduced a year after Grouse was launched and was different to it, with it being softer and more mellow in flavour with a guaranteed age of 8 years. Despite being called a ‘deluxe’ whisky it was sold alongside, but at a lower price point than the ‘Grouse’.  This later changed with the Famous Grouse becoming the more expensive of the two and then Grouse becoming an extinct species. or did it?  I couldn’t find any information saying when the production of the Grouse stopped other than one reference to it being around 10 years later.  I have wondered if it’s possible that it was the Famous Grouse that was discontinued and the Grouse was renamed? In other words did the Grouse take on the name Famous Grouse and the previous Famous Grouse abandoned? jump forward to 2022 and the launch of another blend in the series.  Initially available on-line only it has the odd name of ‘The Famous One’, a sweeter blend than the Famous Grouse, which reminds me of how the Famous Grouse was described in relation to the Grouse.  I find it strange that the well known Famous Grouse may have originally been called the Grouse, then became famous and now there is a lesser known version named The Famous One when the real famous one is not that one but the Famous Grouse which is not the same as the Grouse and that the Famous One is more like the original Famous Grouse before the name was passed to the Grouse and the original Famous Grouse was discontinued… maybe, I have nothing to say that any of this is correct but it is just a thought I have had.  I am waiting for Famous Grouse to respond on this topic and will give an update in the YouTube description if and when that happens.

Jumping back to our timeline and I should add that the other whisky he produced at this time was Perth Royal, also no longer available, but it is worth remembering that these whiskies were only part of the businesses products.

How he did this, in the sense of what the mix was, was his secret recipe - and one that has been passed down through the generations and is still used today.  It is worth giving some thought about what is meant by ‘recipe’ -  If I was to make a simple batter for yorkshire puddings I would know what quantities of flour, milk and eggs to use.  The chances are that the mix would be the same as what my mother, and her mother used.  But whisky is not yorkshire puddings.  To begin with the ‘recipe’ of a blend is much more than just three ingredients. Secondly, the ingredients are not consistent.  To make a good blend one has to select the appropriate whiskies, often 40 plus different ones.  You need to know which mix with which and in what order.  You need to know how to marry them and mature them afterwards.  BUT, one cask of whisky can be different to another cask from the same distillery - so the blender has to be aware of the condition of the casks, monitoring them and selecting them.  There may also be a number of problems such as what happens if a distillery is no longer available? if trade deals change the supply or if a distillery goes out of business or changes the profile of the whisky?  The role of the blender has changed.  When Matthew Gloag III formulated the recipe for Grouse Whisky he did so with great skill but, without wanting to boast, if you gave me enough time and enough whiskies even I could eventually make a decent blend - what I would not be able to do is to maintain and repeat it with consistency for over 130 years. That requires an expert team to check casks around 80,000 times a year and nose 600 samples a day.

Whilst the whisky industry faced many challenges and downturns, many of which are discussed in my youtube series ‘Talking Whisky and the episode titled Timeline of Scotch Whisky’, the Gloag business had such esteemed customers and diverse, quality products that they managed to see those times through to the other side.  In 1908, a period when the whisky world was facing dilemmas of definition,  the Grouse whisky managed to obtain a certificate of purity from the Institute of Hygiene - meaning that it was then argued that should a doctor wish to prescribe a whisky for medicinal reasons then they would be advised to prescribe the Grouse.  In addiction to this they added two more blends to their whisky portfolio - one called the ‘Anti Gout’ whisky and the other the ‘Anti Diabetic’ Whisky.

Over time the business has had a few Matthews.  The first was Matthew Gloag I, then his son - Willian Gloag before returning to another Matthew , this was the son of William’s brother, Matthew Gloag II -no other than Matthew Gloag III, who was followed by his son, Matthew William Gloag. Then by his son, Matthew Frederick Gloag who suffered a fatal heart attack on the 11th January 1970. He had spent his last years worried about his wife’s health who had cancer, she also dies just 3 days after him.  His son ( Matthew Irving Gloag) who had joined the business in 1965 aged just 17, now took control of the business in his early 20s.  He faced immediate challenges.  At this point Harold Wilson was coming to the end of his time as Prime Minister and would be beaten in the election by Ted Heath later that year. Estate duty on properties over £10K was running at 30% and on top of this the Gloag family had to face death duties for both parents at the same time.  It was a major challenge that had not been expected and rested on the shoulders of a grieving, inexperienced and new director. This led to the business being sold to Highland Distillers Ltd, later to become Edrington.  It was a good fit in many ways as Highland Distillers’ portfolio included some of the distilleries that had been supplying Matthew Gloag and Sons with whisky for some time.  Matthew Irving Gloag had been mainly focussed on the wine side of the business and now, despite the business being sold, he wanted to keep the family connection.  He joined the board of directors and began an accelerated apprenticeship into the whisky side of the business.  This included working in various departments of a number of differing distilleries and departments. Eventually he found himself leading the area of brand sponsorship which had a clear emphasis on a wide variety of sports and events - including a taxidermy competition and helped establish the brand in key and new markets.  Highlands vast distribution network boosted the position of Famous Grouse to the point that it became at the most popular Scotch in Scotland and eventually for the UK but was also expanded more into the international market.  But it was more significant than this.  The whisky industry is known to be fluctuating.  It takes time to make whisky and whilst it matures the world can change.  Some of these changes, such as world war and prohibition affect everyone but others don’t.  Changes in trend, for example, can hit one part of an industry but not others.  During the late 70s and onward there was a move away from blended whisky and towards the emerging market for single malts.  It was also a time when some were moving away from dark spirits and finding a preference for other drinks such as clear, white spirits.  This had the effect that those focussed on whisky would face a difficult period whilst those with diverse portfolios were able to reap the benefits of emerging markets.  This, along with other factors, led for an increase in the formation of mega companies within the drinks business.  Smaller distilleries were being acquired to form companies such as Highland Distillers Ltd but big companies were then buying them up to form mega groups.  This nearly happened to Highland when Hiram Walker, the large Canadian Company made moves upon Highland.  By working alongside others, and with political assistance, Highland Distillers managed to keep control and defended itself in ways that Matthew Gloag and Sons would not have been able to on their own. Instead Famous Grouse was given a new lease of life and was awarded a Royal Warrant in 1984. 

It was also part of a landmark legal case in 1998 when it took a lead in action against Welsh Distilleries Ltd.  At the time Welsh Distilleries had launched 2 blends, ‘Swn y mor’ pronounced soon uh moor (meaning the sound of the sea) and Prince of Wales - both labelled as being Welsh Whiskies.  In truth they were blended Scottish Whiskies that had been filtered through welsh herbs.  Matthew Gloag and Sons made the argument that this was a form of ‘Passing Off’ and was unfair trading - I tried the Prince of Wales whisky once and have to say that based on that alone that I am glad that Matthew Gloag and Sons were successful. It is important to clarify that this has nothing to do with the wonderful Pendryn Distillery which opened in 2004.

The Famous Grouse had had a virtual re-launch, along with new artwork by Rodger McPhail and a new slogan “Quality in an age of change’. Under Edrington’s ownership the brand began to expand with other versions coming onto the market.  The first of these was in 2006 with the Black Grouse - a peated grouse.  Then in 2008 they released a blended grain whisky called the Snow Grouse. The trend for spacing these new editions with 2 year intervals was repeated in 2010 when a higher end blended Malt grouse was released under the name of ‘The Naked Grouse’, which, if you think about it, is quite a plucky name. But this was by no means all, a massive range of differing variations were also released catering for all tastes and raising the profile of the distilleries involved. This appeared to include a very different version called the Famous Goose, inspired by the migratory Canadian Goose it was launched as an April fool’s day Joke but was never actually made.  The have also released bottles that clearly illustrate how blended whisky can also be whiskies of status - such as the 40 year old blended malt, which was a limited release and sells for between £2 to £3K. They also set a world record for the largest bottle of scotch whisky in 2012, standing at 5 feet and 5 inches tall and holding 228 litres of whisky, it was a record that was then broken in 2021 by Macallan.

In addition to this was the, now closed, Famous Grouse experience at Glenturret Distillery which was an award winning visitors centre set in Scotlands Oldest Distillery and was mentioned in my episode about Glenturret.

 In January 2022 Matthew Irving Gloag passed away.  He had continued to believe in the product and was a significant part of its history.  During one interview he made, what I find, an interesting comment.  I have often said “don’t underestimate blends” but he took it further.  In the interview he expressed the view that he wasn’t a malt drinker and that you could never be sure what you were getting.  There isn’t a star rating  for malt whisky and there is a vast variety between distilleries, ages and expressions - he even suggested that it was dead easy to make and stick it a bottle,  Blends, on the other hand…

In July 2025 The Famous Grouse brand was acquired by William Grant and Sons, this came with a statement of plans to build on its reputation even further with specific mention of the Naked Grouse.  At time of recording it is still early days to see how this develops but the Famous Grouse has a long enough and interesting enough history already to be worth spending a moment in appreciation of it whilst sat at the bar on a cruise.