Benrinnes was first built in 1826 at Whitehouse Farm (Speyside) by Peter Mackenzie, before being rebuilt at another site three years later following a flood. After changing hands several times, with owners including Alexander Edward—also the owner or joint owner of Craigellachie, Aultmore, Dallas Dhu and Oban—it became part of Distillers Company Limited in the 1920s. The new managers modernized the distillery and increased its production capacity. In 1974, it began using partial triple distillation, as at Mortlach, leading to a whisky with an animal-like character. This technique was abandoned in 2007. The Benrinnes single malt for a long time remained in the shadows, with no official bottling. It is found in the Flora and Fauna series and in independent bottlings.

A Benrinnes 23 year old distilled in 1985 and bottled in 2009. This bottling is part of Diageo’’s Special Releases, a range released annually that highlights some of the finest whiskies of the group’’s open and closed distilleries.