Kingsbarns distillery
| Region: Lowland | |
|---|---|
| Location | Kingsbarns, Fife |
| Owner | Wemyss malts |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Douglas Clement |
| Water source | Borehole |
| No. of stills | 1 wash still 1 spirit stills |
| Capacity | 200,000 L |
| Website | Kingsbarns Distillery |
Kingsbarns distillery is a Scotch whisky and gin distillery located in Kingsbarns, Fife in the Lowlands whisky region in Scotland.
The distillery was founded in 2014 by Douglas Clement[1] and is owned by Wemyss malts [2] with a capacity to produce 200,000 litres of spirit per year.[1]
History
Douglas Clement, formerly a golf caddie, was inspired to open a distillery near to the famous golf courses in the St Andrews and Kingsbarns area after visiting golfers expressed frustration at the lack of a nearby distillery.[3] After he got £670,000 grant from the Scottish Government he was able to convince the Wemyss family to invest £2.5 to £3m.[3]
The Kingsbarns distillery officially opened in November 2014, with the first casks filled in 2015.[4]
In 2017, the company opened a gin distillery on site, after converting a derelict farm cottage, and began to produce Darnley's Gin at Kingsbarns.[5] The gin stills were imported from Italy.[6] A visitor experience for the gin was also launched, called the Darnley's Gin School.[7] The core gin range included three expressions, Original, Spiced and Navy Strength; recyclable refill pouches were launched for all three variants in 2022.[8]
In August 2018, Kingsbarns distillery unveiled its first single malt Scotch whisky.[4] Then, in November, the distillery launched "Balcomie" a single malt sherry cask whisky.[9]
In November 2022, the Wemyss company announce expansion plans of the distillery with the construction of twelve bonded warehouses for whisky maturation and a bottling plant.[10]
In December 2022, the distillery announce plans to enter the United States market.[11]
References
- ^ a b "Kingsbarns". www.whisky.com. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
- ^ Roskrow, Dominic (2018). World's Best Whiskies: 750 Unmissable Drams from Tain to Tokyo (244 ed.). White Lion Publishing.
- ^ a b "What does it take to create a new malt whisky business?". BBC News. 2016-01-14. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
- ^ a b "Inaugural single malt revealed by Kingsbarns". TheDrinksReport.com. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
- ^ Mccartney, Sean (29 June 2017). "Video: Darnley's Gin toasts homecoming as new distillery opens in Fife". The Scotsman.
- ^ Waterworth, Shay (29 June 2017). "Darnley's Gin opens new distillery". Drinks International.
- ^ "Our People: Meet Some of the Team at Darnley's Gin". The Gin Cooperative. 5 October 2019.
- ^ Brooker, Alice (14 January 2022). "Darnley's creates gin pouches". The Spirits Business.
- ^ Murphy, Sean (2020-11-10). "Kingsbarns distillery launches exciting sherry cask matured Balcomie single malt". Daily Record. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
- ^ Council, Fife (2022-11-01). "Major investment as two Fife distilleries announce expansion plans". www.fife.gov.uk. Retrieved 2023-02-22.
- ^ "Fife distillery prepares to make its long-awaited move into American market". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 2023-02-22.