[2][3] In 1836, aged 26 and 22 years, James and John decided to leave their poor rustic lifestyle in search of better prospects in Aberdeen, 30 kilometres (20 miles) away.

[2] James joined William Edwards, who in 1828 had bought a grocery, luxury goods, wines and liquor emporium from the family members of John Forrest.

[9] Vatting of whiskies within bond warehouses was legalised in 1853 by The Forbes-Mackenzie Act,[10][11][4][6] and, with blending, the number of brands made available for sale increased overnight.

[13] It was all one way street then for Chivas Regal, from 1909 till mid 1915, during which period World War I started and became a sluggish, long-drawn affair (1914–18).

They wound up the 20 YO Loch Nevis and reduced the production of the Chivas 25 drastically, resulting in its withdrawal as their standard-bearer and ultimate demise.

They switched focus to a 12 YO heavily marketed 'premium' brand, a decision that would be seen as wise five years later, when World War II (1939-1945) broke out in Europe.

1939 saw the debut and continued success of Chivas Regal 12 YO Blended Scotch in the US at what was to become a global standard proof value of 75 degrees, i.e., 42.8% ABV.

Henceforth, quality, age (generally 12 years), cost (high), popularity (sales) and demography (high-end) would define a 'Premium' Scotch Whisky.

When the Middle East opened up as a market post oil domination/OPEC, Seagrams' products, including Chivas Regal, were banned in the entire Arab controlled area in the early 1960s.

[17] Chivas would limp back nearly four decades later, when under Pernod Ricard, but rise rapidly thereafter to its leading position in the Asia Pacific area.

[23] In October 2023, Chivas Brothers unveiled plans to build a new carbon neutral distillery on Islay, expected to product peated single malt.