Scotland's new distilleries - Posts from Whisky Magazine

$Scotland\'s new distilleries$

The Lochranza distillery on the island of Arran was the last newly built distillery to come into operation in the last millennium. When it opened and the first drops flowed from the stills in 1995, it was a sensation, attracting movie stars and royalty alike. That's no longer the case.

Since the turn of the millennium, 34 new distilleries have come on stream, with at least 10 more in the pipeline. Some of these are very small in terms of capacity, while others are huge. Added to this is the reopening of some of the old distilleries that have been closed since the 1980s.

And yes, we've probably forgotten one or two that have started producing but are not yet listed in the available listings of Scottish distilleries.

Distilleries in the pipeline
That's an impressive list of distilleries that have come into production in recent years, but there are even more in the pipeline. Either under construction and on their way to operation, or simply as projects on the drawing board. Three old traditional distilleries are about to - very soon - start production again, albeit with brand new equipment and in beautiful new facilities. They are Rosebank, Brora and Port Ellen. The latter Port Ellen, located at Islay, will probably not be the last project to see the light of day on the island. Elixir Distillers, which operates the three whisky shops Whisky Exchange in London, is also on the way with an extensive project that has not yet been approved by the authorities.

Also in Edinburgh there is a distillery on the way, namely Port of Leith, which will be a relatively large distillery with an annual capacity of around 400,000 liters.

Another very interesting project is at the northern end of Speyside at the town of Forres, where the old Dallas Dhu is located. The distillery closed down in 1983 and has since served as a museum. However, plans are now underway to start distilling again. The list of projects is very long and it will be exciting to follow in the coming years.