Location: Craigellachie, Scotland, United Kingdom.

Architect: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners.

The Macallan Distillery and Visitor Experience is a contemporary distillery located in the Easter Elchies manor estate in Speyside, Scotland. The design of the building was intended to reflect the international style of the Macallan brand while remaining sensitive to the surrounding countryside. The distillery is cut into the natural contours of the site and features a grass-covered roof that rises and falls to reflect the peaks of the estate grounds. The visitor centre is located close to the Easter Elchies House, which remains at the heart of the estate and is known as the ‘home of the brand.’ The visitor experience starts with an exhibition and gallery area before progressing through a sequence of spaces that follow the production story of the whisky. The sherry cask maturation of the distilled spirit is an important aspect of the Macallan brand narrative, and this is achieved within a central structure in the visitor centre known as the ‘Cave Privée.’ The project uses steam generated from an adjacent forestry commission biomass plant as the primary energy source for the distillation. Low-grade waste heat from the production process is then captured via a heat exchanger to supply hot water for the visitor centre and underfloor heating. The design of the distillery celebrates the whisky-making process as well as the landscape that has inspired it.