Production places
Connections to water sources, peat places, maltings, cooperages, warehouses and maturation sites. Uncertain connections are labelled.
No documented production places are linked to this distillery yet.
Rosebank Distillery
About the distillery
Rosebank is located in Falkirk in the Lowlands, right by the Forth & Clyde Canal, and is one of Scotland’s most talked-about restored distilleries. The house is known for a non-peated, triple-distilled style with a distinctive fruity and floral profile, and since 2023 production has been resumed at the rebuilt distillery.
History
Rosebank began in 1840 on the banks of the Forth & Clyde Canal west of Falkirk. The founder was James Rankine, a local wine merchant, and within forty years the whisky was being shipped to Australia. The distillery remained in the family’s hands until the First World War, when it became part of Distillers Co. Much of the production went to blends, but some of the triple-distilled whisky also circulated locally and with independent bottlers. Rosebank closed in 1993, when the market was characterized by too much blended whisky, and in 2008 the stills were destroyed by copper thieves. The rescue came in 2017, when Ian Macleod Distillers took over and set the rebuilding in motion. On 5 June 2023, Rosebank began producing new make spirit again after nearly 30 years, and the distillery is now back with a focus on its own single malt.
Ingredients and production
Rosebank makes a non-peated Lowland single malt and distills the spirit three times. The distillery continues to use worm tub condensers, which provide less copper contact during condensation of the vapor and thus a heavier spirit. The triple distillation is closely linked to the house’s fruity and floral style, and the rebuilding has been carried out with the desire to move forward using the tried-and-tested methods of the original whisky producers.
Maturation and cask types
Rosebank works with both older casks and single casks. Legacy Release Three is made up of a carefully selected set of casks from the small amount of spirit before the closure in 1993, while Legacy Release One is based on a 30-year-old vintage laid down in casks in 1990. In addition, there is a 33-year-old vintage from 1991 available in travel retail, two single cask bottlings bottled at natural cask strength, and a Remarkable Cask release created by vatting five hand-picked casks and limited to 700 bottles. The portfolio shows mature, exclusive whisky with a focus on the old Rosebank style.
Whiskies
The portfolio revolves around legacy releases, vintage bottlings, single cask releases, and a Remarkable Cask Collection. It is first and foremost a range of mature and exclusive bottlings, with several releases aimed at travel retail or specific markets. The common denominator is the triple-distilled Lowland character that Rosebank uses as the framework for the current releases.
| Whisky | Type / series | Alcohol | Age | Cask and style | Tasting profile | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rosebank 32 Year Old - Legacy Release Three | Lowland Single Malt | 32 Year Old | Selected casks | The third and final release in Rosebank’s first global series of legacy releases. | Current | |
| Rosebank 31 Year Old - Legacy Release Two | Lowland Single Malt | 31 Year Old | The second release in the global series of legacy Rosebank releases.; Nose: Citrus bursts, soft vanilla and candied almonds.; Taste: Camomile, berry and baked banana.; Finish: Sweet peach, oak and herbal notes. | Current | ||
| Rosebank 30 Year Old - Legacy Release One | Lowland Single Malt | 30 Year Old | A hand-picked 30-year-old vintage laid down in casks in 1990.; Nose: Soft and creamy with caramel wafer, vanilla and nutmeg.; Taste: Gentle syrup, pear and pleasing oak spice.; Finish: Candied violets, orange and faint mint. | Current | ||
| Rosebank Vintage 1990 - Release One | Lowland Single Malt | Un-chillfiltered and triple distilled vintage release.; Nose: Citrus, spearmint and apple aromas.; Taste: White chocolate and tropical notes.; Finish: Crisp rich finish. | Current | |||
| Rosebank Vintage 1990 - Release Two | Lowland Single Malt | A hand-picked vintage from Rosebank’s whisky archive, exclusive to global travel retail.; Nose: Victoria sponge cake, pineapple, camomile tea, caramelised pecans, syrup flapjack and clementine.; Taste: Silky and juicy with citrus, peach, butter icing, oats and vanilla.; Finish: Crisp fruity notes and gentle spice. | Current; Global travel retail | |||
| Rosebank Vintage 1991 | Lowland Single Malt | 33 Year Old | Travel retail-exclusive bottled in 350 individually numbered bottles in a specially designed deep red wooden tube with a gold metal base. | Current; Select international airports; 350 bottles | ||
| Rosebank Single Cask 625 | Lowland Single Malt | 50.4 % | Single cask | A single cask bottling at natural cask strength.; Nose: Banana loaf, white chocolate, spearmint, Victoria sponge and dried pineapple.; Taste: Shortbread, chamomile tea, dried herb and citrus.; Finish: Tropical fruit, lime and gentle spice. | Current | |
| Rosebank Single Cask 433 | Lowland Single Malt | 53.3 % | Single cask | A single cask bottling at natural cask strength.; Nose: Vanilla, mango, raspberry, barley sugar and lavender.; Taste: Cranachan, lemon, gentle floral notes, marzipan and faint spice.; Finish: Soft, satisfying citrus finish with hints of ripe fruit and oak. | Current | |
| Remarkable Cask Release One | Lowland Single Malt; Remarkable Cask Collection | 46.8 % | 31 Year Old | Vatting of five exceptional casks | The first release in Rosebank’s Remarkable Cask Collection, created from five hand-picked casks and marked as part of the distillery’s rebirth. | Current; Global Travel Retail; 700 bottles |
Whisky style and tasting profile
Rosebank’s whisky features citrus, pear and peach, which meet vanilla, shortbread and caramel wafer in the matured bottlings. There are also floral and herbal notes in the form of camomile, lavender and gentle floral notes, while several bottlings end with oak, gentle spice and faint spice. The overall style is light and fruity, but with sweetness and spice that adds depth.
Visit the distillery
Rosebank has reopened its doors, and visitors can drop by the distillery as part of the site’s experience. There is a shop at the address in Falkirk, and the visit is tied to the rebuilding and the new whisky story. The material does not specify opening hours, booking conditions, or specific tour and tasting offerings.
Philosophy and craftsmanship
Rosebank’s approach is to rebuild and restore the distillery from the ground up while continuing to work with the tried-and-tested methods of the original whisky producers. After the reopening, the goal is to let the single malt quality carry the distillery’s name, and that line is reflected in the story of both rebirth and production.