Cragganmore distillery Cragganmore distillery Cragganmore is a Scotch whisky distillery situated in the village of Ballindalloch in Banffshire, Scotland. The distillery was founded in 1869 by John Smith on land leased from Sir George Macpherson-Grant. The site was chosen by Smith both for its proximity to the waters of the Craggan burn and because it was close to the Strathspey Railway. Smith was an experienced distiller, having already been manager of the Macallan, Glenlivet, Glenfarclas and Wishaw distilleries. The Strathspey Railway is now disused and forms the Speyside Way long-distance walking route. Cragganmore was marketed by United Distillers under their "Classic Malts"
Great North of Scotland Railway obtained on 17 May 1861. The Sprathspey Railway was sponsored by the Keith & Dufftown and Great North of Scotland Railways, who appointed directors to the board, and the Great North undertook to run the services. The line first headed north to meet an extension of the Morayshire Railway at Strathspey Junction (called from 1864), before following the River Spey to Abernethy. The Act also permitted a branch to the proposed Inverness & Perth Junction Railway at Grantown-on-Spey. The gradients were not severe, but the route required the Spey and its tributaries to be crossed many times, with three bridges