We are living in an era of distilleries being revived, opened or expanded. In my own county of Fife we’ve seen Eden Mill, Kingsbarns and the Glenrothes distillery all spring into life recently. At one point last year I was told a figure of 30+ distilleries were in the works, which is a bewildering uptake. And a remarkable turnaround after the closures of the 1980’s.
Whisky is booming and for some it’s all about making money after a sizeable capital outlay with the de facto 3 years and a day before that magical moment. Trying to keep track of these projects as they come to fruition and their accompanying whisky schemes is almost a full-time role in itself. There are a handful of notable projects that personally do stand out – for instance the Harris distillery which has focused on the island community. I’ve joined their 1,916 programme, purchased a couple of shares in their cask ownership scheme and will finally visit Harris later this year. Then there is the Dornoch Distillery.