The exceptional quality of The Balvenie is due to the fact that the Balvenie Distillery retains and nurtures a high level of craftsmanship that other malt whisky producers no longer employ: nowhere else will you find a distillery that still grows its own barley, still malts in its own traditional floor maltings and still employs coopers to tend the casks and a coppersmith to maintain the stills.

Our Malt Master, David Stewart, whose signature appears on each of the Balvenie bottles, enthuses on this aspect "The Balvenie's high quality is down to the traditional way of making malt whisky... it's this seamless transition through generations of creativity and craft that has preserved The Balvenie's consistency in producing such delightful drams."

We are fortunate to have many long-serving, dedicated craftsmen working at Balvenie.

After being appointed Master Blender of William Grant & Sons in 1974, David Stewart is the longest-serving malt master in the industry. In 2005, he received the highly prestigious International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) Outstanding Achievement in the Scotch Whisky Industry Award.