Morrison Bowmore adds 12 year old Speyside to McClelland's Range

A 12 year old Speyside malt has been added to the McClelland’s family of malt whisky. The Morrison Bowmore owned brand is made up of four key expressions, Speyside, Highland, Lowland and Islay. The Speyside 12 year old was launched to global customers this month (November 2008) and will be joined next year by a Highland 12 year old version, Lowland in 2010 and Islay in 2011.

The introduction of a 12 year old McClelland’s range will give the consumer an opportunity to trade-up from the core McClelland’s malts, experiencing the regional differences of Islay, Speyside, Lowlands and the Highlands in an aged single malt whisky.



New packaging and brand support was introduced by the McClelland’s range this year and this, together with a targeted sales push, has resulted in a projected annual growth of over 10%, well ahead of current market trends.

The brand is currently No 4 in the US market, in terms of sales volume, a position it has held for the past five years. In the US it competes directly against Glenlivet, Glenfiddich and The Macallan. The brand is also distributed to global markets which include Taiwan, Holland, Austria, South Africa, Japan, Canada, France, Russia and the Netherlands.



McClelland’s has emerged as a strong brand property that plans to launch in the UK marketplace in 2009, selling solely off-trade through major national supermarkets.

Mari Ann Laidlaw, Brand Manager for McClelland’s, said: “The 12 year old range has been launched in response to consumer demand, as whisky lovers look for taste and quality they can trust but want to purchase at a realistic price point. The current range is selling extremely well globally, the introduction of a 12 year old range will not only support and strengthen the McClelland’s range but also highlight the differences which take place when a whisky is aged for a longer period of time. All adding to the educational message of the brand”

“We have lots planned for the brand in the way of support to coincide with the UK launch and hope to announce further details in the next few months.”