R&B DISTILLERS GRANTED PLANNING PERMISSION FOR NEW CAMPBELTOWN DISTILLERY

R&B Distillers, has announced that it has secured planning permission from Argyll and Bute Council, for its Machrihanish Distillery, the first farm-to-bottle distillery in Campbeltown in over 180 years.

The company which also owns the Isle of Raasay Distillery, purchased the Dhurrie Farm in Machrihanish in 2021, will now work with various stakeholders around environmental guidelines and other conditions before beginning construction on the site next year.  

David Nicol, Co-Founder of Caskshare - Norman Gillies, Operations Director of R&B Distillers - William Dobbie, Managing Director of R&B Distillers and Alasdair Day, Co-Founder and Master Distiller at R&B Distillers

The Machrihanish Distillery, which will eventually include a full visitor experience, shop and tasting room, will predominantly produce unpeated spirit matured in Sherry casks. While different in style of spirit and region of that produced at its Isle of Raasay Distillery, it will exhibit a similar philosophy around provenance, quality and community regeneration.

R&B plans to develop a sustainable net zero distilling model that removes any fossil fuel use from the whisky distilling process, using regenerative, environmentally friendly farming practices and creating greater biodiversity in the surrounding area. Up to 20 new jobs will be created in the region over time, having a positive impact on the local economy.

Commenting on the news, William Dobbie, Managing Director of R&B Distillers, said: “The rubber stamp for the distillery marks a major milestone on our journey in Campbeltown. When the whisky becomes of age our investment will go beyond production, attracting visitors to the region and supporting the local economy in a similar way to our existing distillery on Raasay. We are excited to be making this investment in Campbeltown and supporting the local economy through jobs and visitors. This milestone has particular significance to our family as my father Bill’s family come from Drumlemble, a small village in between Machrihanish and Campbeltown.”

R&B Distillers, has also announced the acquisition of a controlling stake in Caskshare.com, the global eCommerce platform and bottler of single cask spirits. In addition to whisky it plans to add other cask-aged spirits like rum and cognac over time and will initially target markets in Europe and the United States.

Posted by Steve Rush

THE BORDERS DISTILLERY SECURES £35M FUNDING PACKAGE

The Borders Distillery, has announced that it has secured a £35 million funding package from the wine and spirits, technology and financing platform Ferovinum.

The new arrangement will enable The Borders Distillery - the first to operate in the Scottish Borders since 1837, to grow its business and develop its core strengths in advance of the eventual release of its single malt Scotch whisky.

The Borders Distillery secures £35m funding package

As a first-of-its-kind funding platform dedicated to unlocking growth for wine and spirits enterprises, Ferovinum will also provide The Borders Distillery with specialist operations and supply chain tools to support trading in the UK, Europe and the USA.

Commenting on the news, John Fordyce, Mangaging Director of The Borders Distillery, said: “We are delighted to have found a partner in Ferovinum and its excellent team. We share the same ambitions to grow, enthusiasm for the Scotch hisky industry and commitment to deploy technology to facilitate growth in multiple markets.”

Gregor Mathieson, Director of Spirits at Ferovinum, added: “We are very proud to be supporting The Borders Distillery during their next phase of growth. It is six years since the stills started running at their extraordinary site in Hawick, and the dedication to making great whisky as well as being a force for good in the Borders community is palpable amongst the whole team. Ferovinum was created to provide ambitious, visionary drinks businesses like this with the backing and specialist support they need to achieve their goals, and we are very excited to be partnering with John and the team for the journey ahead.”

The Borders Distillery Company was founded in 2013 by George Tait, John Fordyce, Tim Carton and Tony Roberts. After raising £9.6m in equity funding a new distillery was built in an abandoned building in the centre of Hawick with the first spirit distilled on March 6th 2018.

Posted by Steve Rush