The plans are part of a £150m investment in Scotch whisky tourism by the drinks company, focused on their Johnnie Walker blended whisky brand.
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| The new planned visitors centres at Cardhu and Clynelish distilleries |
The detailed planning applications have been completed for both distilleries following community consultation events and have been filed with the relevant local authorities - Moray Council for Cardhu and Highland Council for Clynelish.
Under the investment plans, Cardhu will become the Speyside home of Johnnie Walker and Clynelish will become the Highland home of Johnnie Walker, and will be thematically linked to a new global Johnnie Walker visitor attraction in Edinburgh. Both distilleries have long associations with Johnnie Walker and remain two of the most important single malts in the making of the brand.
Commenting on the news, Laura Sharp, Cardhu Distillery Brand Home Manager, said: “This is an important step in our plans for the distillery. We have already shared our initial plans with the local community and now we look forward to working with local stakeholders as we progress the planning process. Speyside a hugely important part of the Scotch whisky tourism map and we are very excited by the plans for Cardhu, which we believe will bring new visitors to the distillery and to the region.”
Also commenting on the news, Jacqueline James-Bow, Clynelish Distillery Brand Home Manager, said: “This is another significant milestone on our journey to transform the visitor experience at Clynelish. We believe the investment we are making at the distillery will create a major new attraction and help bring more tourists to this part of the world in the future.”
Subject to successful planning permission, work should commence at both distilleries later this year, with completion targeted for late 2020.
Posted by Steve Rush