The seven operating malt whisky distilleries north of Inverness are all coastal, except Glen Ord, and that is a mere 3 kilometres from the coast. This is not surprising: it was much easier to transport by sea than by land, until the arrival of the railway. Perhaps on account of this closeness to the sea, the northern malts can sometimes have a ‘maritime’ character and even a slightly salty taste.

They tend to be medium-bodied and complex in character, sometimes with a hint of scented smoke – this is particularly true of Clynelish and its sister distillery Brora, which closed in 1983, and of Old Pulteney and Balblair.

Of the remaining four, Glenmorangie is light and fragrant, Dalmore is heavy and oily (and as a result matures well in European oak); Glen Ord and Teaninich are medium-bodied. It is said that Ord is the ‘perfect example of the Highland style’.

WESTERN HIGHLAND - Single Malt Whisky (including Campbeltown)

Before the rise of Speyside, Campbeltown was the distilling capital of Scotland, home to 28 distilleries at its high-point in the 1830s. Today there are three: Springbank (which also makes a smoky malt named Longrow and an un-peated whisky named Hazelburn), Glen Scotia and Glengyle (opened 2004).

Further north, in the town of the same name, is Oban Distillery, which produces a classic light-bodied maritime make, and further north again, in Fort William, stands Ben Nevis Distillery, in the shadow of Britain’s highest mountain, once a major producer, now less well-known.

EASTERN HIGHLANDS - Single Malt Whisky

This region embraces the old counties of Aberdeenshire and ‘Forfarshire’. The northern-most stand on the edge of Speyside region in rolling farmland: Macduff, Knockdhu, Glendronach, Ardmore and Glen Garioch. Close to Balmoral Castle and surrounded by the mountains of Royal Deeside stands the small and attractive Royal Lochnagar Distillery. Further south, in the rich farmland of The Mearns, Fettercairn and Glencadam Distilleries are the only remaining survivors, although the makes of a further four (North Port, Glenury Royal, Glenesk and Lochside) are still sometimes found.

Eastern malts tend to be medium- to full-bodied, smooth and sweetish, but with the typically dry Highland finish. Apart from Ardmore and Glen Garioch they have no smokiness.

SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS - Single Malt Whisky (including Perthshire)

Most of the Perthshire distilleries were built along the fertile alluvial glens carved out by the River Tay and its tributaries, the Earn and the Tummel: Glenturret and Tulliebardine are in Strathearn; Aberfeldy, Blair Athol and the tiny Edradour in Strathtay. To the north surrounded by the high moors of the Grampian Highlands is Dalwhinnie, and on the southern edge of the Highlands are Deanston, Glengoyne and Loch Lomond Distilleries.

The flavour profile of these Southern Highland malts is similar to that of the Eastern Highlands.