Mannochmore is a fairly modern Speyside workhorse, built in 1971 during the industry’s expansion years, and planted right beside Glenlossie Distillery near Elgin as if the two were meant to share a single set of keys. For a long time it was designed to be more useful than famous, producing a steady, light malt primarily for blending rather than for a front-and-centre single malt range.

Its story has a practical rhythm. The site was mothballed from 1985 to 1989, then brought back as demand improved, and it has historically been closely tied to its neighbour in how staff and production were managed.

On the making side, Mannochmore runs a straightforward six-still setup: three wash stills and three spirit stills, all geared toward a clean, consistent spirit with plenty of copper contact. Water is drawn from the Bardon Burn, and the resulting new make is typically on the lighter, fruit-leaning side once it has had time to settle into cask.

If the name rings a bell with a bit of mischief attached, that will be Loch Dhu, the famously dark single malt released in the mid-1990s and distilled at Mannochmore. It made headlines more for its colour and oddity than for fitting any classic Speyside mould, and it remains one of those bottlings people mention with a grin and a raised eyebrow.