Stewart Laing, Scotch Whisky Scion Who Founded Hunter Laing and Later Opened Ardnahoe Distillery, Dies at 79

Stewart Laing, the driving force behind Ardnahoe Distillery and co-founder of Hunter Laing & Co., has died at the age of 79, leaving behind a legacy that helped bring single cask scotch whisky to a global audience.

Born into a whisky family in 1946, Laing’s life in scotch seemed preordained. His father, Frederick Laing Sr., established a blending business, Douglas Laing & Co., in Glasgow in 1948, and Stewart joined the family company in the 1960s. Before working there, he had gained experience at Hiram Walker’s Dumbarton Distillery, which produced Ballantine’s, and also had a six–month stint at Bruichladdich Distillery on Islay, where he absorbed traditional distilling practices and developed a lifelong affection for the island that would later shape his ambitions.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Laing helped expand blended brands such as King of Scots and House of Peers into international markets, with his younger brother, Fred Jr., joining the family firm in 1972. In 1990, Douglas Laing & Co. was awarded the Queen’s Award for Export, but it was Laing’s next move, a pivot toward single cask whisky, that proved transformative. In 1998, Douglas Laing & Co. launched the Old Malt Cask range, a series of single cask independent bottlings that arrived just as interest in single malt scotch was gaining steam. The Old and Rare Platinum series followed in 2001, earning a loyal following among enthusiasts and collectors for their authenticity, rarity, and individuality, with closed distillery expressions from Port Ellen and Brora becoming highly collectible.

In 2013, after decades of building the family business together, the two brothers went their separate ways in what both called an amicable demerger, dividing the brands between them. That same year, Stewart founded Hunter Laing & Co. with sons Andrew and Scott. Dividing the brands between the two businesses, Douglas Laing & Co., carried on under the chairmanship of Fred Jr. and his daughter Cara. For its part, Hunter Laing & Co. initially focused on independent bottlings, but Stewart remained driven by one final ambition: owning a distillery. That dream came true with the creation of Islay’s Ardnahoe Distillery, which began production in 2018. One of Stewart’s last public appearances was in 2024, where he signed bottles of the distillery’s inaugural release, capping a six-decade career in scotch.

Stewart Laing passed away on April 8^th, but his influence will endure not only through his family and company but through Ardnahoe distillery and the continued worldwide appreciation for single cask scotch. He was a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Distillers, and his outstanding contribution to scotch whisky was acknowledged when he was inducted as a Master of the Quaich in 2022. In the end, few figures bridge scotch whisky’s past and present as completely as Stewart Laing: blender, independent bottler, businessman, and finally, distillery owner.