The name Monkey Shoulder is because in the traditional malt whisky making process, malted barley is turned by hand by malt men using large heavy malt shovels. Years ago, some malt men would develop a strain injury which had a tendency to cause their arm to hang down a bit like a monkey's, so they nicknamed it 'monkey shoulder'. Thankfully, the condition no longer exists but we're still proud to honour Monkey shoulder's whisky heritage.