The Cairn

Type: Distillery

Beneath a green sedum roof beside the River Spey, The Cairn brings a whisky business founded in 1895 into a new chapter.[1][8] Gordon & MacPhail’s second distillery stands at Craggan, just outside Grantown-on-Spey, on the river’s north bank within the Cairngorms National Park.[2][8] Its first spirit flowed in October 2022. In 2025 came First Peek, its first single malt release, bottled at three years old.[3][8][10]

Fact box

What The Cairn is known for

The Cairn is a young distillery with an experienced owner. Founded in Elgin in 1895 and owned by the Urquhart family, Gordon & MacPhail bought the silent Benromach in 1993 and reopened it in 1998.[8] The Cairn expanded an established distilling business rather than marking the company’s first venture into making spirit.

Its setting gives it a distinctive identity. Beside the Spey, within the Cairngorms National Park, it is reported as the first distillery built inside the park since its designation in 2003.[8] The green sedum roof, described in Gordon & MacPhail’s construction account, is a defining feature of the building.[1]

The whisky names tell two different stories. CRN57 is a blended malt range drawn from Gordon & MacPhail’s older cask stocks. First Peek is single malt distilled at The Cairn itself.[3][8] The distinction matters: CRN57 carries the new distillery’s identity, but is not its own distilled whisky.

Building through the pandemic

Construction began in July 2020, after COVID restrictions on building work had been lifted, according to Gordon & MacPhail.[1] The project had been announced in 2018 and received planning permission in 2019.[1][8] The completed building was handed over in September 2022.[1]

The producer names Morrison Construction as the main contractor and Forsyths as the maker of the distillation equipment, manufactured at its Rothes and Elgin sites. About 90% of the work, it reports, was undertaken by businesses in the north of Scotland.[1]

The project brought together separate teams for the building, the working distillery and the visitor experience. NORR Architecture and TGP receive the architectural credits, while Studio MB developed the visitor experience.[8] Forsyths supplied the equipment at the heart of production.[1]

Story box: A new distillery built through the pandemic

• Founding story: Gordon & MacPhail announced plans for the Craggan site in 2018; planning permission followed in 2019.[1][8]
• Turning point: Building work began in July 2020 after COVID construction restrictions were lifted, according to the producer.[1]
• Documented record: Gordon & MacPhail records the building’s handover in September 2022.[1]
• Claim and verdict: Construction began after COVID building restrictions were lifted. Documented.
• Evidence gap and earliest known source: The supplied sheet does not document the earliest source for the construction account.
• Sources and claim mapping: Planning permission, construction start and handover are covered by Gordon & MacPhail’s construction account; the 2018 announcement appears in Whisky Clan’s history.
• Last checked: The supplied sheet records November 2026.

Production at The Cairn

The Cairn has twice as many spirit stills as wash stills: four smaller vessels against two larger ones.[8] That makes the balance of the installation worth noting, rather than simply its total of six stills. The specifications below describe their sizes and shape, without establishing a house flavour.

The published equipment account also lists a Bühler mill with SCADA control and a 5.8-tonne full lauter mash tun.[8] The latter figure describes the mash batch, not annual spirit capacity. Each stainless steel washback holds a reported 26,300 litres and has cooling jackets.[8]

The detailed specifications and reported schedule come from Whisky Clan, while Forsyths’ involvement is documented separately in the producer’s construction account.[1][8] The schedule does not confirm current operation or independently measured output. Nor can equipment and fermentation times replace a documented tasting of the resulting whisky.

From CRN57 to First Peek

CRN57 looks to the map for its name: the distillery stands at 57 degrees north.[8] The range draws on Gordon & MacPhail’s older cask stocks, so the number is neither an age statement nor a suggestion that those mature whiskies were distilled at The Cairn.

CRN57 Step One carries the geographical theme further. Its release comprised 1,309 bottles, matching the height of Ben Macdui in metres.[8]

First Peek tells the other half of the story: whisky made at The Cairn. The producer calls it the distillery’s first ever release, and the supplied record identifies it as a three-year-old single malt bottled at 57% ABV in 2025.[3][10]

One writer notes that First Peek arrived earlier than previous talk of waiting 10 to 12 years.[6] The release comprised 1,000 bottles and had sold out by January 2026.[6][8][9] Published accounts place the first core single malt around 2034 or in the mid 2030s. That timing remains an expectation, with no confirmed release date.[8][9]

Disputed accounts

Public opening date

Verdict: Disputed. The public opening is variously dated to 17 October 2022 and 18 October 2022. October is recorded, but the precise day remains unresolved.[4][8]

Sources: Scotch.scot and Whisky Clan. Which source supports each date, and the earliest known source, require verification. Last checked: not documented.

First Peek casks

Verdict: Disputed. Published accounts describe First Peek’s maturation in either first fill sherry hogsheads or refill sherry hogsheads. The cask type remains unresolved.[6][8]

Sources: HTFW and Whisky Clan. Which source supports each claim, and the earliest known source, require verification. Last checked: not documented.

Capacity

Verdict: Disputed. One account gives capacity as 1,000,000 litres of pure alcohol, with 2,000,000 litres planned after additional washbacks; another reports 2,000,000 litres a year. Current capacity remains unresolved.[5][8]

Sources: TasteSCOT and Whisky Clan. Which source supports each figure, and the earliest known source, require verification. Last checked: not documented.

Production timeline

The 2024 milestone places The Cairn in a broader company story. Gordon & MacPhail stopped filling casks at other companies’ distilleries while owning Benromach and having built The Cairn.[8] The new site belongs in that context, alongside the company’s older distilling operation.

Visiting and understanding the site

The Gathering restaurant and a visitor experience developed by Studio MB form part of The Cairn’s visitor provision.[1][8] Before travelling, check the distillery’s own current information for booking requirements, accessibility, age rules and restaurant arrangements; the recorded opening in 2022 does not establish today’s access conditions.

Gordon & MacPhail dates from 1895; The Cairn’s spirit dates from October 2022, with First Peek following in 2025.[3][8][10] The owner brings a long whisky history. The distillery’s own single malt is still young.

Where to go next

• Benromach: Explore Gordon & MacPhail’s other distillery.

Sources

[1] Gordon & MacPhail. Landmark moment at The Cairn. Producer’s account, publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026.
https://www.gordonandmacphail.com/corporate/press-releases/landmark-moment-at-the-cairn

[2] Maltspedia. The Cairn Distillery. Undated trade reference; checked November 2026.
https://maltspedia.com/distilleries/the-cairn-distillery/

[3] The Cairn Distillery. First Peek 3YO. Producer’s product account, publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026.
https://www.thecairndistillery.com/whisky/single-malt-scotch-whisky/first-peek-3yo

[4] Scotch.scot. Cairn (The Cairn). Trade reference; checked November 2026.
https://scotch.scot/whisky/distillery/cairn-the-cairn-distillery

[5] TasteSCOT. The Cairn Distillery. Trade reference; checked November 2026.
https://tastescot.co.uk/whisky/distilleries/the-cairn

[6] HTFW. The Cairn Distillery. Trade reference; checked November 2026.
https://www.htfw.com/brands/the-cairn-distillery

[8] Whisky Clan. The Cairn Distillery: History, Whisky Range and Visitor Guide. Publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026.
https://www.whisky-clan.com/post/the-cairn-distillery-speyside-crn57-history-whisky-visitor-guide

[9] A Scot on Scotch. The Cairn First Peek. 5 March 2026, as dated in the supplied URL; checked November 2026.
https://ascotonscotch.com/2026/03/05/the-cairn-first-peek/

[10] Long Pour Amour. The Cairn, First Peek single malt tasting notes. Publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026.
https://longpouramour.com/the-cairn-first-peek/

This desk-researched article uses the supplied verified fact sheet, distinguishing the producer’s construction and product accounts from trade reporting; no site visit or first-hand tasting is claimed.

Last checked: November 2026