The first batch of an alcoholic beverage is known to have been made 5000 years ago. There is always a fight on who made it first. Some say the Egyptians; some say it was the Chinese. I would prefer to sit back relax and enjoy the beverage while they are busy in the argument.

Commercial manufacturing of Alcohol with licenses began much later, probably about 500 odd years ago. New distilleries come up at different parts of the world and they do definitely surprise all of us, consumers, with their craft products. Here are some of the oldest distilleries in the world, in no particular order.

1. Year- 1608, Old Bushmills Distillery, Ireland One of the oldest licensed distillery is located at Bushmills, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Manufacturing began with the grant from King James 1, back in 1608. The trademark license was registered in 1784. Bushmills are known for their Irish whiskey brands. They also produce single malt using 100% barley. This brand is currently owned by Diageo, the world’s largest liquor company.

2. Year- 1757, Kilbeggan Distillery, Ireland There is always a fight here with regards to which is the oldest distillery. Although they had stopped production for a while, the license to produce was received in 1757. Some say that the distillery is older than the Bushmills, however, this is still a debate.

3. Year- 1691, Nolet Distillery, Schiedam, Holland This family run business would definitely go on top of the list of oldest distilleries in the world if the dating of Bushmills is proved to be 1784 against 1608 that they claim. This Dutch distillery is known for its brand Ketel One Vodka and Jenever.

4. Year- 1575, Lucas Bols Distillery, Holland Oh! Well.. Wait before you decide which is the oldest. Here is a clear winner. The distillery had been producing spirits since 1575 and is one of the global leaders in liqueur manufacturing. They manufacture 38 different varieties of liqueurs apart from spirits.

5. Year- 1779, Distilleria Nardini, Veneto Region, Italy The first Grappa’s were distilled here and yes, they still manufacture the finest of the Grappa’s in the world. The ingredients for the Pomace Brandies are transported from Piedmont region, in Italy.

6. Year- 1670, Demrara Distillery, Guyana Older than the oldest known rum brand in the world, Mount Gay, the distilleries were set up as a cooperative. They are the largest producers of Rum in the world with a capacity of 26 million Litres a year. They also supply liquor to brands like Diageo in Europe. Their famous brand of liquor is the El Dorado Rum and is Demrara Rum.

7. Year- 1703, Mount Gay Distilleries, Barbados Now this is the second oldest Rum Distillery in the world. The name of the distillery came from Sir John Gay Alleyne, the manager of the distillery and the sugarcane plantation, where the distillery is setup- Mount Gilboa Plantation. The company owns premium rum brands and they recently entered India. The brand is currently owned by the French group- Remy Cointreau.

8. Year -1773, Buffalo Trace Distillery, Frankfort, Kentucky Buffalo Trace is named as such because it was erected where ancient Buffalo once roamed. The distillery is known for its Bourbon, Rye whiskey, Sazerac and Vodka too. They were awarded the brand innovator of the year 2015 and won the Whisky Distiller of the Year award in 2014.

9. Year- 1775, Glenturret Distillery, Scotland The oldest known distillery in Scotland was founded in 1775. However, this is not the oldest continuously operating distillery as it was shut down for a large part of the 20th century, until 1959, when Remy Cointreau acquired it. The brand from this distillery is Famous Grouse.

10. Year- 1793, Plymouth Gin Distillery, Plymouth, England Although not really eligible to be in the top 10 oldest, this Gin manufacturer was a monastery that was built in 1431. This is the only distillery in Plymouth that has survived till date. This distillery is also known as Black Friars Distillery. The company is currently owned by Pernod- Ricard, the second largest liquor company in the world, known for brands like Chivas Regal, Jameson Irish whiskey, Absolut Vodka and many more.

The oldest known Distillery in Asia is the Kasauli Brewery. This was setup in the late 1820’s by then General Edward Dyer, of the East India Company. This was constructed to make the finest whisky. The equipment were shipped from England and Scotland too. However, in 1855, the brewery was dismantled and moved to Solan. The distillery still operates at Kasauli and it is one of the oldest distillery in the world, which has been in continuous operation. The most regarded produce is the Solan No.1 Single Malt whisky. However, since the exit of British from India, the distillery is now known as Mohan Meakin Limited.

This is the distillery from where the Cult Old Monk Rum is manufactured. Other noted products are Diplomat Deluxe Whisky, London Dry Gin and also a Vodka named Kaplanski. A totally multi functional distillery cum brewery.