Chivas Regal

Chivas Regal traces its origins to a grocery shop in Aberdeen, Scotland, opened by John Forrest in 1801 — the year the brand adopts. The brothers James and John Chivas, sons of farmers, arrived in the city in 1836; James went to work at the shop, then owned by William Edward, and became a partner in 1838. In 1843 the house received its first Royal Warrant, to supply Queen Victoria at Balmoral Castle. When customers asked for a smoother whisky, the brothers began blending in the cellar, and in 1857, with John joining James, Chivas Brothers was born.

The first Chivas Regal only came in 1909: a 25-year-old blend created by master blender Charles Howard and Alexander Smith, which the brand calls the world's first luxury whisky. It was a hit with New York high society until American Prohibition in 1920, and the brand returned in 1938 with the 12-year-old blend still sold today. In 1949 Canada's Seagram bought Chivas Brothers and, the following year, the Strathisla distillery in Keith, founded in 1786, whose malt goes into every bottle of Chivas Regal. In 2001 Pernod Ricard bought part of Seagram's drinks business, including Chivas, and is the current owner; the company says Chivas Regal is the third-biggest Scotch whisky brand in the world.