Ladyburn is another Ghost malt distillery within an operational grain distillery, this one being Girvan in Ayrshire owned by William Grant & Sons Limited. One of the rarest of whiskies, Ladyburn has only been bottled on two occasions by its owner. Independent bottlings are equally elusive because, obviously, all of the spirit was destined for the Grant blends, whilst the company’s other malt whiskies - of great fame -  Glenfiddich and Balvenie were taking the single malt market by storm.

When I visited Girvan in 1987 I noted that although Ladyburn had not produced whisky for more than 10 years, it was still capable of doing so. The four stills were still intact, as were the mash tun and wash backs. Even so, distilling at Ladyburn never resumed. Its spirit, however lingers on because another single malt distillery opened within the confines of Girvan in 2007 named Ailsa Bay. A suitable reincarnation one might speculate.