Top 10 mispronounced Scotch brands pt. 2

The struggle goes on for non-Gaelic speaking Scotch lovers – tongue-tangling names of distilleries can baffle and amuse in equal measure.

Allt-à-Bhainne: a Scotch tongue twister

Following on from our first batch of top 10 mispronounced Scotch brands, we thought it was time to shed some light on ten more of Scotland’s whisky brands and distilleries that can prove perplexing to pronounce.

While many of the bigger Scotch names have become established lexicon even outside of Scotch circles, there remain a number of more niche distilleries that remain unfamiliar to tongue, even if they delight on the palate.

Where is a non-Gaelic speaker to begin?

Click through the following pages to discover the next batch of hard to pronounce Scotch brands.

Think we’ve got it wrong or missed out a tricky customer? Let us know in the comments below.

Glentauchers

Image: Andrew Wood

Pronounced: glen-TOCK-ers

They say it’s not difficult when you know how, but to the uninitiated, the ‘auch’ in Glentauchers can mislead. The Pernod Ricard-owned distillery produces a lighter-style malt used in blends such as Ballantine’s. Glentauchers was founded in 1898, saw significant expansion in the 1960s, but was mothballed from the mid 1980s until 1992. We’re pleased the distillery is back – while single malt bottlings are the mainstay of independent bottlers, the liquid is deserving of a try.

Pittyvaich

Image:Christopher Gillan

Pronounced pitty-VEK

A comparatively transitory distillery, Pittyviach’s name, as well as its whisky, is well worth getting your tongue around. The ‘viach’ sound is in face a short, sharp ‘vek’ –  much like the history of the distillery itself. Diageo-owned today, the site was first developed in 1975 but was only operational for 18 years. Pittyviach was demolished in 1995; the bonded warehouses pictured above are all that remain. Watch out for the occasional independent bottling, or Diageo Special Release expression.

Tomintoul

Image: Des Colhoun

Pronounced tomin-TOWEL

Tomintoul, often referred to as “the gentle dram”, is one of the easier to pronounce on this list. Replace the ‘oul’ with an ‘owel’ sound, and you’re there. Located in the Speyside region close to the village of Tomintoul – the highest on the region – the distillery was founded in 1965 and is today part of the Angus Dundee Distillers portfolio. Tomintoul is becoming more and more renowned for its single malt offer – don’t miss its lesser-known peated expression, bottled as Old Ballantruan.

Clynelish

Pronounced: klyne-LEESH

Only two syllables despite that extra ‘e’, Clynelish is a Diageo-owned operation built in 1968 adjacent to the original distillery of the same name. Clynelish 1 was closed before the current distillery was operational, but to add to the pronunciation confusion, the original plant was briefly operational again from 1969 until 1983 to produce a heavily peated whisky to supply for blending – it became known as Brora. A large proportion of Clynelish production goes towards Johnnie Walker, but a 14-year-old single malt is widely available.

Allt-à-Bhainne

Image: Ingo Wölbern

Pronounced: Olter-VEIN

Allt-à-Bhainne roughly translates into English as ‘milk burn’ – but no need for concern, the whisky is far from sour. A real workhorse distillery mostly fuelling Chivas Regal, the opportunity to taste a single malt expression should not be passed up. The site was built in 1975 as one of the most modern distilling sites of its time. Briefly mothballed from 2003-05, the distillery was brought back into operation as demand for the blend increased.

anCnoc

Image: Anne Burgess

Pronounced: a-NOCK

Produced at Knockdhu Distillery, the ‘C’ in at the centre of anCnoc is silent, with the emphasis falling on the second syllable. Located on Speyside’s Eastern frontier and founded in 1893, Knockdhu is another whisky production site with a chequered past. Closed from 1983 until 1988, when it was purchased by Inver House Distillers, anCnoc was chosen as the single malt brand name to differentiate it from the nearby, well-established Knockando whisky. anCnoc’s core expressions include 12YO and 16YO releases, in addition to peated variants.

Teaninich

Image: Andrew Wood

Pronounced: teen-IN-ik

Teaninich’s pronunciation is all a case of emphasis: keep the stress on the middle syllable and all is well. Interesting in function as well as etymology, Teaninich was built without a mash tun, most likely due to a shortage to barley when it was first constructed in 1817. Today a nifty mash filter is operational, which, in combination with a hammer mill, does away with the need for a tun at the Diageo-owned site. The distillery has released a 12YO expression as part of the Flora and Fauna series, and a number of independents release bottlings from time to time.

Caperdonich

Image: Martyn G Jenkins, Whiskycyclist

Pronounced: kappa-DON-ik

Keep the emphasis on the ‘don’ and the ‘ch’ hard and Caperdonich isn’t too tricky to pronounce after all. Once billed “Glen Grant II”, the distillery was built in 1898 but has not fared well. Following a period of closure, the site was reopened in 1965 but because British law prohibited distilleries from sharing the same name it became Caperdonich. The distillery was sold to Seagram in 1977, and then sold again to Pernod Ricard in 2001. One year after purchasing Caperdonich (pictured above in 2004), Pernod Ricard closed the site. In autumn 2010 the distillery was demolished – Caperdonich did not get its fairytale ending.

Auchentoshan

Pronounced ock-en-TOSH-an

Probably the best-know dram on this list, Auchentoshan has fooled whisky fans with its ‘ch’ and ‘sh’ sounds since it was founded in 1800. Its name translates as “the field of the corner”, with the liquid also known as “Glasgow’s Malt Whisky” due to its close proximity to the city. Auchentoshan is today owned by Beam Suntory and is the only distillery in Scotland to use a triple distillation method in production. The distillery has released a plethora of single malts and is now making headway in the global travel retail channel.

Glenallachie

Image: Anne Burgess

Pronounced: glen-AL-a-ky

Again, the secret to Glenallachie’s production lies in the emphasis: focus on the ‘al’ and keep the ‘ch’ hard. Today owned by Chivas Brothers, Glenallachie mainly produces whisky for blends. The only official single malt release came in 2005, a 16YO cask strength expression. Private bottlings do exist, most notably from Signatory.