The Banff distillery was located in the east of Speyside in the Highlands of Scotland. It was built in 1824 by Major James McKilligan before coming into the hands of the Simpson family. The distillery was closed in 1863 by James Simpson Junior, who opened a new distillery in Inverboyndie, closer to the railway line. 1877 saw the first of a long series of fires that would plague Banff’‘s history. In 1932, in a difficult economic climate, the Simpson family sold the distillery to Scottish Malt Distillers Limited (SMD), a subsidiary of Distillers Company Limited (DCL) that managed its malt distilleries, but it remained closed until World War Two. In 1941, it was bombed by the Luftwaffe and production only began again after the war, before once again coming ceasing due to fire in 1959. Like many other distilleries, it closed in 1983 and, when it was being demolished in 1991, the last warehouse caught fire, bringing to a close the beautiful story of Banff. In the DCL era, Banff mainly produced whisky for blends, although a few bottlings of the malt can be found, particularly in the Rare Malts collection or with independent bottlers. Fans appreciate its fruity, oily and slightly smoky character.

A 34 year old Banff single cask (#3437) distilled in 1966, matured in a sherry butt and bottled in 2011 for the Silent Stills range designed to showcase whiskies from various closed distilleries. Signatory Vintage was founded in 1988 by Andrew Symington, who previously worked at Prestonfield House, Edinburgh, where he would select casks specially for the hotel. In 2002, he bought the Edradour distillery in Pitlochry, in the Highlands of Scotland and moved Signatory Vintage to the site, including the warehouses opposite the distillery. A limited edition of 528 bottles.