Charles Mackinley & Co. was founded in 1815. Originally a wine merchant in Leith, the company soon diversified into whisky, creating The Original Mackinley blend in 1847. The family-run business had close connections and shares in the now-closed distilleries Inverness, Glen Mhor and Glen Albyn. Mackinley & Co. was also one of the first businesses to bottle single malts from its distilleries. It was bought by Invergordon Distillers in 1985 and joined Whyte & Mackay in 1993.

A replica bottle of the whisky left in the Antarctic by Sir Ernest Shackleton during his expedition to the South Pole between 1907 and 1909. The whisky was blended by Dalmore’’s master blender Richard Patterson from Speyside, Highland and Island whiskies, including Glen Mhor 1983, distilled in the year Glen Mhor was closed and demolished. Dalmore is owned by Whyte & Mackay.