MARLOE WATCH COMPANY & ARDNAMURCHAN DISTILLERY
A SPECIAL COLLABORATION BETWEEN MARLOE WATCH COMPANY AND ARDNAMURCHAN DISTILLERY
THE TENSION OF TIME
Welcome to The Glenbeg, a very special partnership with Ardnamurchan Distillery.
Time, in this context, is being stretched in two directions. At Marloe we talk about spending our time well. About using it wisely because it slips through our fingers all too quickly. We want to slow time down, it’s our enemy. The obverse of that time coin is whisky, where time is our friend. We want it to speed up. The longer whisky matures in the cask, the more remarkable it becomes. So that tension of time is a really interesting perspective to design from, and why we were so chuffed that Ardnamurchan Distillery felt the same way.
This is a wonderful collaboration between Marloe Watch Company and Ardnamurchan Distillery and a big moment in Ardnamurchan’s journey. Our task was simply to design something that encapsulates everything that happens here, from the mechanical precision and alchemy of production, through to the casks maturing in the dusty dunnage warehouses, and then match that up with a quite remarkable cask of Ardnamurchan 10-year-old whisky, one of the distillery’s first to be released.
What better way to celebrate the coming together of two like-minded companies than a special watch and whisky? We hope you love it, because as you’ll see, it’s the product of doing things as expertly as possible, not as fast as possible.
To the future, and whatever it may hold.
OLIVER GOFFE - OPERATIONS & MARKETING
There’s a reason that Marloe is regarded as the most customer-loyal and friendly watch company around. It’s because of Oliver’s unwavering commitment to doing things the right way; he could be labelled a perfectionist, but we prefer to call him immensely pernickety.
GORDON FRASER - CREATIVE & PRODUCTION
Design through immersion is what makes each Marloe watch unique. A professional empathiser, Gordon highlights the spirit of pioneering, human endeavour and love of discovery in everything we do. A patriotic Scotsman, lover of pretzels and whisky. Maybe jazz too.
10 years of distilling
“ONCE THIS IS GONE, IT’S GONE FOREVER”
“This special project has been a joy from start to finish.
It has been a true collaboration. I have been fully immersed into “watch land”. Both Gordon & Oliver have included Ardnamurchan in every step of the design process - from materials, dials, hands and colours to the extensive packaging and copy that accompanies this unique project. I am very proud of how it has turned out.
Selecting the liquid was also a true collaboration. We all firmly agreed that Cask 233 was the one. A fantastic example of Ardnamurchan whisky, left to mature for 10 years for a full Sherry cask maturation, a cask like no other.”
Connal Mackenzie - Sales Director, Ardnamurchan Distillery
TRADITION MEETS SUSTAINABILITY
Ardnamurchan Distillery, nestled in the small hamlet of Glenbeg on Scotland’s remote Ardnamurchan Peninsula, is dedicated to making single malt Scotch whisky using the lightest-touch approach to distilling in a remote location, including adding value to co-products and empowering a realistic and tangible circular economy. Established in 2014 by independent bottler Adelphi, the distillery blends traditional methods with innovative eco-friendly practices, utilising local renewable energy sources. With a focus on authenticity and traceability, Ardnamurchan offers both peated and unpeated whiskies that reflect the rugged beauty and rich heritage of the region.
Its award-winning expressions showcase a balance of complexity, character, and purity, making Ardnamurchan a standout in the world of artisanal whisky production.
The Glenbeg Spirit Still
A MILESTONE WHISKY
In 2014, Cask no. 233, an ex-Oloroso sherry cask, was filled with New-Make spirit made from malted barley, water and yeast. This New Make was distilled in the towering wash and spirit stills inside the Ardnamurchan Distillery.
This spirit has rested since then, maturing slowly in the dusty hillside coastal warehouses at Glenbeg for 10 years.
For the first time this spirit, now called whisky, has been disgorged into bottles, for us mere mortals to experience.
The whisky inside the iconic slate-blue bottle of an Ardnamurchan Single Cask release is exceptional. It’s unique and can never be repeated. Waiting on this whisky to come of age was Time Well Spent.
Now, it’s time for you to Taste the Story.
CASK 233
10 YEARS OLD
UNPEATED FIRST FILL SPANISH OAK
EX-OLOROSO SHERRY HOGSHEAD
53.4% ABV
UNCHILL-FILTERED / NATURAL COLOUR
SELECTED ON 13TH AUGUST 2024
292 BOTTLES NUMERICALLY MATCHED
TO EACH GLENBEG WATCH
THE GLENBEG BLUE
BACKGROUND
As partnerships go, watches and whisky seems like a pretty obvious one.
This, coupled with the clear and resonant frequency on which both Marloe and Ardnamurchan Distillery operate and conduct themselves, meant that the suggestion of a collaboration by Sales Director of Ardnamurchan Distillery, Connal Mackenzie, was met with much enthusiasm.
Since that meeting in Glenbeg in early 2023, the two teams have worked simultaneously to manifest a collaborative design that celebrates Ardnamurchan Distillery, its approach to whisky making and its ethos and values, as well as the beauty of the distillation process.
Knowing that Ardnamurchan Distillery would be celebrating their decade of distilling in 2024, it felt like the perfect time to launch a watch and whisky project, where we’d select together a single cask of whisky to sit alongside the watches, in a stunning collaborative package. The Glenbeg Blue is a fitting tribute to the alchemy of whisky, and the sustainable and modern approach to the tradition of whisky production that Ardnamurchan Distillery delivers.
SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL
As hard as diamonds. That's all you really need to know about Sapphire crystal. Tough, clear and undeniably supreme when it comes to transparent materials, the crystal that covers the dial of the Glenbeg is coated in 3 layers of Anti-reflective coating on both sides of the crystal, to minimise reflections.
COPPER APPLIQUE
Taking inspiration from the cask ends at Ardnamurchan, where the wooden staves meet the cask ends, forming the sealed vessel that matures the whisky.
Ardnamurchan paints its cask ends, and so we've used those shapes and colours to represent the casks lying in stows, sleeping soundly until the whisky inside is ready to be released.
THE PERSUADER
The hour and minute hands are a reference to the tool used to extract the bungs from the casks - small wooden plugs that keep the whisky inside, whilst allowing access to the whisky for checking and quality control.
This quite intimidating tool has a large screw tip which, when turned into the softer oak plug, grips the wood tightly. With the hammer side, the screw is bashed into the plug further and, with a quick whip of the wrist, removes the bung from the cask.
Ardnamurchan calls its bung extractor tool "The Persuader", and its hexagonal form served as the perfect shape for our hands.
The Glenbeg Blue features a date complication placed neatly at 6 o’clock. We’ve used a matching slate-blue background with white printed numerals for the date, and in a unique take on dial design, framed the date in the shape of a cask with a copper chamfer. It’s a subtle detail on a subtle feature, and enhances the Glenbeg Blue dial immeasurably.
DATE COMPLICATION
STP1-21 MOVEMENT
When we were considering which movement to deploy for the Ardnamurchan partnership we knew we had to choose with absolute confidence, a calibre that would deliver for us on all fronts.
Accuracy and reliability are fundamental for us, but we also wanted to customise this movement with a copper-plated rotor, and etch “The Ardnamurchan Distillery” into that copper surface.
We required a high-beat, 28,000bph movement that offered a date complication and featured all the standard stuff we expect from a modern mechanical movement - hacking, quickset date and shock protection.
Finally, we wanted the movement to be Swiss, and so the STP1-21 was the perfect fit for a project this prestigious.
CASE DESIGN
This is the most challenging part of watch design, for it’s the biggest and most obvious part of the watch, and also the most important to get right. If the case is designed in a way that is uncomfortable to wear or really bulky and awkward, you won’t want to wear it at all!
The Glenbeg also has to feel like it belongs inside the production house of Ardnamurchan Distillery, and so we spent a lot of time crafting the form of the case to look and feel like a piece of distilling equipment, with gently barrelled sides, multiple step changes and beautiful, sculptural lugs. The 9 o’clock side of the case features a deeply etched motto found on the bottom of Ardnamurchan’s bottles: “Headland of the Great Seas", and reinforces the coastal character of Ardnamurchan’s whisky.
The caseback is inspired by the still hatch doors, iconic in design and highlighting the red paint fill of the copper rotor, so that the caseback resembles the still within which the whisky is brought up to cask filling strength.
Wearing the Glenbeg is a joy, with the watch sitting low and slim on the wrist, yet still grabbing your attention through beautiful wrist presence. This all works together with the crown design, dial design and colour palette, to make the Glenbeg a truly striking watch.
OPERATING THE GLENBEG
WINDING THE MOVEMENT
POWERING YOUR GLENBEG
Your Glenbeg Blue can be hand-wound to introduce power into the mainspring. Because the STP1-21 is an automatic movement, you needn’t worry about over-winding or breaking the movement from winding it manually, so give it a good 40-50 full turns to make sure your mainspring is fully tightened, giving you the 40+ hours of power reserve.
As this is an automatic movement, so long as you are wearing the Glenbeg and active, the copper oscillating weight attached to the back will swing back and forth, injecting little pops of energy back into the mainspring, keeping your watch running for as long as you continue wearing it.
Modern micro engineering at its finest!
CHANGING ThE TIME & DATE
A SIMPLE PROCESS
The STP1-21 is an automatic movement with 3 hands and a date complication, meaning that when and how you set your watch is a bit more important than with a 3 hander.
Please note that you must not change the date between the hours of 10pm and 3am. The date wheel has very fine teeth that are connected to the time mechanism (so that the date changes at midnight every day). If you try and force a change during this time, there’s a very small possibility that there could be damage to these small teeth. Best just to wait until the morning to reset the date.
With that in mind, the process is simple. Pull the crown out and set the date to the day before the current day, so for example if you’re waking up to the 3rd of the month, set the date to the 2nd. Then pull the crown all the way out, which will stop the seconds hand moving (hacking function) and allow the hour and minute hands to be set.
Progress the hour and minute hands around the dial clockwise until the date switches over to the current day - this puts everything in alignment with the current day, and means the date will progress at midnight as designed. Simply set the current time and, once happy, push the crown all the way in. This will kick the seconds hand into life again, showing that your watch is now operating under power and displaying both the correct date and accurate time of day.
SPECIFICATIONS
SWISS MADE x BRITISH DESIGN
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Swiss Made
41.2mm diameter x 11.0mm depth
20mm strap width
Ardnamurchan Distillery inspired case
Sapphire crystal with dual side AR coating
Still hatch door exhibition caseback
Ardnamurchan Slate Blue dial with copper applique
Persuader bung extractor hand design
Valinch counterweight seconds hand
Luminous hands and cask-end applique
10 ATM
68g
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STP1-21 with custom Ardnamurchan copper rotor
Swiss Made
28,800 bph
26 jewels
40+ hour power reserve
Customised quickset date at 6
Accuracy of -8 ~ +15 sec/day
Hacking function
Incabloc anti-shock
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A mechanical movement, like a car engine, uses oils to lubricate the moving parts. Over time this fine grade of oil can become gloopy, causing your movement to lose accuracy. Every 4-5 years, think about having your watch cleaned and re-oiled by a professional - it’ll keep everything ticking along nicely.
The Glenbeg enjoys a 2-year limited warranty which covers manufacturing defects. T&C - see our website.
