Possibly one of the most widely known whisky blends, Bell’s was formed by Arthur Bell in the 1850’s, however his introduction to whisky came much earlier. Almost 200 years ago, in 1825, Arthur began trading whisky from a small store in Perth, Scotland, and in 1982 he saw an opportunity to blend whisky to create a more consistent taste.
Working with only the finest single malts, sourced from across Scotland, he created the now famous Bell’s blend. Despite creating his own blend, Arthur didn’t put his name to it until his sons joined the business in 1895, at which point the very first ‘Arthur Bell & Sons’ label appeared, just prior to Arthur’s death in 1900. After his brother Robert retired in 1921, Arthur Jr took sole control of the company, and took full advantage of the end of the Prohibition in America by purchasing three new distilleries - Blair Athol, Dufftown and Inchgower - satisfying the huge demand for the Bell’s blend.After the Bell brothers deaths in 1942, the company continued to grow, becoming the highest selling whisky in Scotland by 1970, and by 1980, after marketing it’s ability to be used with a mixer for women, had 35% of the UK market. This attracted some of the world’s largest drinks companies, and in 1985 was purchased by Guinness, and later absorbed into Diageo.
