Loch Lomond Group

In 1974 Alexander (Sandy) Bulloch founded Glen Catrine Bonded Warehouse, a blending and bottling business, to supply own-label gin, vodka and whisky to his family's shops.^1,5 In 1987, during a downturn in the market, Glen Catrine bought Loch Lomond, silent, or closed, since 1984, and restarted malt distilling there.^1,4,5 In 1989 Glen Catrine created Loch Lomond Distillers to run the distillery.⁸ In 1993 it set up the Loch Lomond Distillery Company to join its wine and spirit wholesale business with Loch Lomond Distillers.⁹ Grain whisky production began at Loch Lomond in 1994, and at the time it was the only distillery in Scotland making both grain and malt whisky.^4,5,10 Also in 1994, Glen Catrine bought Gibson International's whisky business, with Glen Scotia and Littlemill, and promptly mothballed Glen Scotia, stopping its production.^1,10,11 Littlemill was closed and sold to a developer soon after.^1,10,11 Glen Scotia returned to fully staffed production in 1999.¹¹ Michael Henry, today the group's master blender, joined the business in 2007.^4,12

In 2014 Sandy Bulloch sold the business to Exponent, which took a majority stake in the new Loch Lomond Group.^1,2,3 Colin Matthews, formerly of Imperial Tobacco, led the 2014 buyout and became chief executive, and former Diageo finance chief Nick Rose was named chairman.^2,6,13 The deal brought the Loch Lomond and Glen Scotia distilleries, the remaining Littlemill whisky stocks, the Glen Catrine bottling plant and the High Commissioner blended Scotch.^5,9

In June 2019 Hillhouse Capital bought the group from Exponent, with Colin Matthews and the management team again leading the deal.^3,6,7 In 2021 the group launched Spearhead, a single grain Scotch, meaning grain whisky from one distillery, made at Loch Lomond in a continuous Coffey-style still.¹⁴ In May 2025 it bought Brooklyn's New York Distilling Company, maker of Jaywalk rye, in its first move into American whiskey.^15,16,17