Our story: Over 125 years in the making;
Our story begins
Established as a grocery business in 1895 in the heart of Scotland’s Speyside region, we originally curated all manner of groceries from around the world such as teas, coffees, wines and whisky. Their appreciation of the rich tapestry of flavours they encountered led the founders, James Gordon and John Alexander MacPhail, to seek out and complement this varied stock with equally fine produce in the form of Speyside’s many and varied single malt Scotch whiskies.
1915
First generation, establishing principles
It was in these early years that a young John Urquhart joined the business to serve as an apprentice under the two founding partners. Urquhart quickly established himself as a valuable associate for James Gordon in selecting, purchasing, and maturing whiskies from local distilleries. John also assisted with the creation of house blends for the shop’s customers across the Speyside area. Over his long career dedicated to sourcing flavour both from home and abroad, John Urquhart developed his skills as a master of malt whisky maturation, building an impressive portfolio of maturing whisky casks. He was able to pass on this deep knowledge and passion for single malt Scotch whisky to his family.
1933
Second generation, a pioneer
‘Mr George’, as he was fondly known by those who knew him best, was Mr George Urquhart, second generation of the family that owns Gordon & MacPhail.
A true pioneer, Mr George was instrumental to the success of Scotch whisky, particularly single malts. He started working in the business in 1933 and in 1968 created the iconic Connoisseurs Choice range featuring single malts at a time when most were used for blending.
Mr George travelled widely, keen to showcase single malts from distilleries all over Scotland, matured in his own casks.
1940
A Legendary Year
On the 3rd of February 1940, to the instruction of John Urquhart, 15 First Fill Sherry Butts were filled at Glenlivet and left to mature in warehouse number 6 at the distillery.
A selection of these casks were left to quietly slumber in our warehouses, eventually going on to make history as the oldest single malt Scotch whiskies in the world.
1945
Second World War
With excellent stocks of whisky, our business survived the ravages of the Second World War. In fact, we released large quantities of our stocks of mature whiskies for shipment to the United States. These whiskies brought in needed funds that were applied towards the war effort. During those bleak years, when barley rationing reduced distilling almost to a standstill, we continued to fill our casks. Owing to the prudent stewardship of John and George, our future was secured during these turbulent times. Indeed their foresight in filling large amounts of whisky in the late 1930s and early 1940s meant we had healthy stocks when peace was finally declared in 1945.
1967
Ian Urquhart
Just as his father had introduced him to the firm, so George brought in his own children. His eldest son, Ian, joined in 1967, after having been trained in the wine and spirit trade in London and France. He became Managing Director at Gordon & MacPhail in 1990 and retired in August 2007.
1968
Connoisseurs Choice Launches
In the late 1960s, whisky pioneer George Urquhart took the unprecedented step of launching a range of single malts from across Scotland distilleries bottling them under the banner of 'Connoisseurs Choice'. This range set the trend for single malts around the world.
1972
David Urquhart
In 1972, Ian’s younger brother David joins the family business. A graduate of business in Aberdeen, David worked in various areas of the company before becoming UK Sales Director. Upon Ian Urquhart's retirement in 2007, David and his brother Michael took the reigns as Joint Managing Directors. David retired in October 2012. Following a period of ill health, David sadly passed away on November 30th 2015 at his home in Findhorn aged 63.
1981
Michael Urquhart & Rosemary Rankin
The year 1981 sees two more family members joining the business; Michael and Rosemary. A chartered accountant, Michael started as Finance Director. Over the next 30 years he took on the additional responsibilities of Export Director and Whisky Supply. Michael became Managing Director of Gordon & MacPhail in October 2012. Rosemary joined after raising her family. She became a Company Director in 1990.
1991
Move to George House
In the 1970s and ‘80s the business expanded significantly. Led by UK Sales Director at the time David Urquhart, the company grew its wholesale business throughout Scotland, then further afield in the United Kingdom. To support this rapid growth, operations were shifted from the offices above the South Street shop, to custom-built offices and duty paid warehouses – named George House – at Boroughbriggs Road in 1991.
1993
Family dream realised
Alongside an unrivalled knowledge of Scottish single malts and passion for matching spirit with oak, the Urquhart family held a long-standing ambition to own a distillery. This desire became a reality in 1993 with the purchase of the Benromach Distillery on the outskirts of Forres, just twelve miles from the steps of the shop in Elgin. Five years of careful and deliberate re-equipping, Benromach Distillery was officially reopened by HRH Prince Charles in 1998.
1995
Celebrating 100 years
The year is 1995 and we celebrate our centenary anniversary. One hundred years has seen witness to three generations of the Urquhart family learn and grow the business. Since our humble beginnings as a family grocers, tea, wine and spirit merchant, we have diversified business with a number of different interests; expanding from retailer and bottler of single malt Scotch whisky into specialist wholesalers and cask maturation experts whose whiskies are bought and sold internationally.
2000
Stephen Rankin
The dawn of the new millennium welcomed the first member of the fourth generation into the family business, Stephen Rankin. John Urquhart’s great grandson started his career as a quantity surveyor and, in 2000, joined us full time. In 2010, Stephen became UK Sales Director and now fulfils the role of Director of Prestige for Gordon & MacPhail Whiskies as well as having overall responsibility for the retail shop at South Street, Elgin.
2010
Generations Mortlach 70 Years Old
On 11th March 2010, Gordon & MacPhail made history by launching Generations Mortlach 70 Years Old, the world’s oldest bottled Single Malt Scotch Whisky. Unveiled at an exclusive event at Edinburgh Castle, the release sparked international media interest, and all large decanters were either sold or reserved within two weeks by collectors and whisky enthusiasts worldwide.
2011
Generations Glenlivet 70 Years Old
On the 8th March 2011 Gordon & MacPhail released the second in the Generations series: Glenlivet 1940 70 Years Old.
2012
Generations Glenlivet 70 Years Old (Release 2)
On the 20th September 2012 Gordon & MacPhail released Generations Glenlivet 1940 70 Years Old (Release 2). This second, and final, release from cask 339 offered one last chance for collectors and consumers to own a piece of Scotland’s liquid history
2015
Generations Mortlach 75 Years Old
On the 2nd of September 2015 Gordon & MacPhail released the next in the Generations range, Mortlach 75 Years Old – believed to be the world’s oldest single malt Scotch in the world at the time.
2018
Fiona Vine
In 2018, John Urquhart’s great granddaughter joined the company, completing a management training programme before taking up the role of Procurement Manager in 2019.
2019
The Cairn
Planning permission granted in 2019 for The Cairn - a new distillery currently being built by Gordon & MacPhail in the Cairngorms National Park.
Scheduled to open in spring 2022, The Cairn Distillery will include a visitor experience, tasting rooms, retail space and bistro.
