Dornoch Distillery
Dornoch
Sutherland
History - Phil and Simon Thomson, along with their family have been running The Dornoch Castle Hotel and whisky bar in Sutherland for many years. But it wasn't until the brothers left University that they focused full-time on the whisky bar and became fanatical about collecting the stuff. They bar and the brothers quickly got the reputation as stocking some of the rarest and most interesting whiskies from around Scotland, winning many awards in the process. Their passion drove them one step further when in 2014 they had the dream of building their own distillery in what was a old 19th century fire station on the grounds of the castle. After crowdfunding and even selling their own flat their dream became a reality in 2016 when Dornoch Distillery finally opened. Their goal was to create a whisky thats character and mouthfeel similar to those made prior to the 1960s, an era of whisky that they both first fell in love with. While their whisky is resting they have created a gin to keep themselves busy. Thompson Brothers Organic Highland Gin was launch a year ago and to great acclaim. They are currently looking for funding to move premises to up their production because of demand.
The Gin – As well as the gin, they also bottle whisky and even a rum from other distilleries under The Dornoch name. If you do seek them out then i would highly recommend trying the Bunnaha-bhain 1989, 28 Years old or their Hampden Jamaican Rum aged for 17 years. When it comes to the gin they have not held back to create something unique. The Gin is made up of a botanical mix of classic and modern ingredients, keeping with their ethos of mixing the old traditions with modern innovation. Where else would you find freeze-dried raspberry and elderflower alongside juniper, angelica and cardamom. The result is a gin like no there with a lovely mouth feel, that can easily be drank over ice as well as in a G&T.
Geek Alert - The team here are dedicated to doing things the right way when it comes to making their products. While they use many traditional methods including doing their own floor malting of their barley, which hardly any other distillery practises, they also use many methods that aren't so traditional. For example they ferment (making the beer before it becomes whisky) for between 7 to 10 days which is about 5 to 7 days more than most other distilleries. This isn't just for show, it is all aimed at creating the style of spirit they need before going into their casks.
Why Visit? – Unfortunately the distillery is not opened to the public but if their crowdfunding is successful to move to bigger premises then I'm sure you will soon be able to see the amazing methods they use.
Interesting fact – The castle itself has a rich history being built around the end of the 15th century. After being renovated into a hotel in 1947 it eventually came into the hands of Colin and Ros Thompson who acquired the premises in 2000, who along with their sons, Simon and Phil have ar-guably established it as the most famous whisky hotel on the planet.
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