The Glasgow Distillery Company was founded in December 2012 by Liam Hughes and Mike Hayward, aiming to bring single malt whisky production back to Glasgow after more than a century's gap. It operates from a converted industrial unit in Hillington on the city's outskirts rather than a traditional distillery building. The name of its core range, 1770, honours the original Glasgow Distillery Company, which began distilling at Dundashill in that year and grew into one of the largest distilleries in the world before closing in 1902.
The modern 1770 Glasgow Single Malt range includes a peated expression and a triple-distilled bottling, reflecting different production styles rather than different ages. The company describes itself as Glasgow's first independent single malt distillery in over a hundred years.