FDBusiness.com

Holyrood Distillery has opened its doors to bring single malt whisky distilling back to the centre of Scotland’s capital city for the first time in almost 100 years. Holyrood Distillery, which cost £6.7 million and has created around 30 jobs, is the first operational single malt distillery in central Edinburgh since 1925 when The Edinburgh Distillery (aka Glen Sciennes) closed.

The distillery, which also produces a range of gins and gin liqueurs, offers daily guided tours throughout the year and is set to become a major visitor attraction in Edinburgh for both tourists and locals. Located on the edge of Holyrood Park and close to popular Edinburgh Festival Fringe venues The Pleasance and George Square, the new distillery is within easy walking distance of the city’s main attractions, including The National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse. It is also a short walk or bus ride from Waverley Station.

The distillery, which has been built in a 3-storey Class B Listed former railway goods shed dating back to 1831, will focus on the creation of maximum flavour in all the spirits it produces. Using innovative production approaches, such as a complex combination of yeasts and a unique selection of different types and styles of malted barley, it will initially produce four core flavours of whisky – smoky; sweet; spicy; and fruity/floral.

Spirit production will be handled by distillery manager Jack Mayo, previously of The Glasgow Distillery, alongside distillers Ollie Salvesen and Elizabeth Machin. The whisky is distilled using two exceptionally tall stills – at 7 m tall, they are the tallest stills in Scotland in proportion to their volume.

Holyrood Distillery is the notion of Canadian Rob Carpenter who, in 2013, first had the idea for a distillery and visitor experience in central Edinburgh. Rob Carpenter, who founded the Canadian branch of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society together with his wife Kelly, has brought his vision to life in partnership with co-founder David Robertson, who has 25 years’ experience in the industry.

To fund the project, Rob Carpenter and his team raised £5.8 million of investment. This included a £1.5 million investment from the Scottish Investment Bank, the largest single investor, and investments from about 60 private individuals from around the world.

Bookings for Holyrood’s range of daily guided distillery tours, all of which focus on exploring flavour, are now open via its website at https://www.holyrooddistillery.co.uk/tours/ with tickets for adults starting at £14.

CAPTION:

Pictured at the opening of the Holyrood Distillery (back): Distillers Ollie Salveson, Elizabeth Machin and Jack Mayo and (front left) founders Rob Carpenter and David Robertson.