Andrew Usher, Scottish whisky distiller

Scotch whisky is Scotland’s leading indigenous product, and is of major importance to the economy not only of Scotland, but of the United Kingdom as a whole.

Although recorded in UK Exchequer accounts as far back as 1494, the Scotch whisky market in a form recognizable as such today is usually anchored in the early 1800s.

In 1860, whisky broker Andrew Usher started the blending of grain and malt whisky spirits to create a smoother and lighter tasting Scotch that met with favor in England. Andrew Usher (5 January 1826 – 1 November 1898) has being acclaimed as the father of the modern Scottish whisky industry.

The development of blended whisky by Andrew Usher provided a further boost as this increased the demand for grain whisky dramatically. Continuously distilled grain whisky became the major component of blended whisky, which was established as an international drink by the turn of the nineteenth century.

In 1885, Andrew Usher, William Sanderson and John M. Crabbie decided to establish The North British Distillery Company Limited on a pig farm in ten acres of stubble on the western outskirts of Edinburgh. The distillery came on stream in September 1887, producing just under 1 million liters of alcohol in the remainder of that calendar year.
Andrew Usher, Scottish whisky distiller