The majority of the warehouses at The Balvenie Distillery are traditional dunnage warehouses. Cool and dark and filled with the musky aroma of the earthen floor and the fruity maltiness of the maturing spirit, here the casks rest, racked horizontally, three or four layers high.

It is now generally accepted that up to 50% of the final flavours and aromas in single malt are derived from the maturation in oak casks. barley type, style of malting, water, fermentation, microclimate and the size and shape of the pot stills are some of the other influencing factors.

At The Balvenie Distillery the importance of wood, and the profound effect that it has on maturing single malt, is understood and appreciated. It allows the spirit to breathe, to feel the temperature changes of the warehouse and the cool Highland climate beyond.