West Cottage, Royal Lochnagar Distillery

West Cottage, along with the Royal Lochnagar Distillery complex, dates to 1845, with alterations in the late 19th and 20th centuries. The group constitutes a purpose-built distillery, including a manager's house to the northeast. The buildings are constructed of coursed grey granite rubble, with the four-storey, double-pile former maltings building (now a warehouse) notable for its regularly spaced small shuttered or hoist door openings. The U-plan steading (now functioning as a visitor’s centre) features seven former cart arches on its eastern side, flanked by advanced blank gable ends to the north and south, now with boarded, two-leaf timber doors. A pyramid-roofed mash house is also present, alongside a complex of single-story office buildings to the north, which incorporates a three-bay cottage. A tall brick chimney rises to the south. Fenestration is varied, but predominantly features timber surrounds, with grey slate roofs and some gable stacks. Brown painted iron rainwater goods are also present.

Internally, most of the interiors have been modernized, although an old, open top mash tun accompanied by rakes, and rows of iron columns in the former maltings remain.

The manager's house is a two-story, three-bay structure with a timber gabled porch and is built of coursed grey and pink granite. It has timber sash and case windows, two gable stacks, and purple slates, along with white-painted rainwater goods. A single-story outhouse, constructed of granite rubble, is also present, featuring an eight-pane timber casement window and a timber door.

The complex represents a good example of a mid-19th century distillery still in operation, having been established in 1845 following the destruction of a previous distillery by fire in 1841. John Begg was granted a lease for construction in 1845. The distillery was visited by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1848, which resulted in a Royal Warrant and the adoption of the "Royal Lochnagar" brand name. Substantial, sensitive alterations were made in the late 20th century to accommodate visitors and modern distilling practices. The site appears on the 1866 Ordnance Survey map and further information was provided by distillery staff in 2005.