Black & White is the standard blend of the company begun in 1884 by James Buchanan as a whisky blenders and merchants in London. Within a year it was a success, with a contract to supply the House of commons, and the firm was one of the prime movers in the introduction of blended whiskies to the English market. The whisky was bottled and labelled in a very distinctive black and white livery, and this popular nickname eventually was adopted as the brand name. The company amalgamated with Dewar’s in 1915, and both joined the Distillers Company ten years later.