Lindores Abbey on the south bank of the Tay at Newburgh holds a particular place in Scotch whisky's origin story. The Exchequer Rolls of 1494 record an order of 'eight bolls of malt' to Friar John Cor 'wherewith to make aquavitae', the earliest written reference to whisky-making in Scotland. The friar worked at Lindores, and for centuries the abbey ruins were a place of pilgrimage for whisky writers with no whisky to drink.
That changed in 2017, when the McKenzie Smith family opened a working distillery on the abbey grounds. Their flagship single malt, named simply 1494, was first released in 2021. It is matured in a combination of ex-bourbon, sherry and STR (shaved, toasted and re-charred) red wine casks, bottled at 46% without chill filtration or colouring.
The result is an approachable, honeyed Lowland whisky with enough sherry and STR influence to give it body without burying the cereal character. It is not trying to be ancient or austere — it is a modern, well-made first release from a young distillery that takes its history seriously without being shackled by it.
For anyone interested in the longer arc of Scotch, a dram of 1494 in sight of the abbey stones is a quietly satisfying piece of historical bookkeeping.
