Scotland, Northern Highlands. Distillery operational. Owner: Inver House Distillers Ltd.

It was at the dawn of the new millennium, under the leadership of Inver House Distillers Ltd - the distillery's new owners from 1996 on - that Balblair freed itself from its past as a blender's malt (Ballantines', Hankey Bannister, Pinwinnie, etc.) and became a single malt in its own right. Unpeated and frequently aged in ex-bourbon casks, Balblair released numerous small-batch vintage bottlings. In the early 2000s, the classic 10 Year Old and 16 Year Old Elements versions were joined by two outstanding versions aged respectively for 35 years (1970) and 33 years. It was, however, with two bottlings from 1966 (38 years) and 1974 (27 years) matured entirely in sherry casks that Balblair veered off the beaten track and attracted the attention of collectors.

A Pure Malt (single malt) bottled by Hiram Walker, at the time the owner of the Balblair distillery and Geo. Ballantine & Sons. A version produced for the Italian market in the 1980s, imported by Spirit Spa in Geneva. Bottle equipped with screw cap and gold foil seal covered in the Italian tax strip.