1st June 1495 is the first written record of Scotch whisky. It was recorded in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland with Friar John Cor listed as the distiller.

To Friar John Cor, by order of the King, to make aqua vitae, VIII bolls of malt.

— Exchequer Rolls of Scotland, 1 June 1494.

The Exchequer Rolls’ record crown income and expenditure and the quote records eight bolls of malt given to Friar John Cor to make aqua vitae over the previous year. The term aqua vitae is Latin for “water of life” and was the general term for distilled spirits. This would be enough for 1,500 bottles, which suggests that distillation was well-established by the late 15th century.

The first known reference to a still for making “aquavite” in Scotland appears in the Aberdeen council registers, in a case heard in 1505 by the town’s bailies concerning the inheritance of goods belonging to a chaplain named Sir Andrew Gray, who died in 1504. Among his goods was recorded (in Middle Scots) “ane stellatour for aquavite and ros wattir’”.

In 2022, the Scotch Whisky industry generated £7.1billion GVA (Gross Value Added) in the UK.

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