FDBusiness.com

The Irish Whiskey Association has welcomed the news from County Down that Echlinville Distillery is opening the doors of its distillery and is launching visitor tours to the public. The Association says that this will boost County Down’s tourism offer and the local economy. The IWA states that it is a sign that the Irish whiskey revival is taking place right across the island of Ireland and that as the Irish whiskey industry continues to grow, the development of an all-island approach to Irish whiskey tourism should be a consideration.

Echlinville Distillery became the first licensed whiskey distillery in Northern Ireland in over 125 years when it received its license to distil in 2013. Alongside its own Echlinville single pot still and single malt whiskies, Echlinville also plans to launch a super-premium Irish potato vodka and a single estate gin.

The new facility in County Down has secured Echlinville’s place as Northern Ireland’s second biggest spirits producer, with the capacity to produce around 15,000 bottles of the highest quality whiskey, gin, vodka and poitín every week.

The stillhouse is the jewel-in-the-crown of Echlinville’s innovative facilities, which include an extensive maturation hall, bottling and storage facilities, and an impressive function room – all nestled within the grounds of the historic Echlinville Estate. The development has been supported by Invest NI and the Department for Agriculture and Rural Development.

Echlinville has also opened its doors to the public with the launch of visitor tours, which will offer a unique insight into the workings of Northern Ireland’s newest distillery, near Kircubbin in the picturesque Ards Peninsula.

“With a wealth of new entrants in the Irish whiskey sector, we will continue to see a significant number of new tourism offerings opening over the coming years, like the Echlinville distillery tours,” says Miriam Mooney, head of the Irish Whiskey Association. “This will bring jobs and investment in communities in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.”

She adds: “The island of Ireland has the opportunity to bring together the industry and government agencies such as Tourism Ireland, Failte Ireland and the Northern Ireland Tourism Board to put together a coordinated strategy for an all-island approach to Irish whiskey tourism. The tourism agencies in both jurisdictions can help develop this route as a necklace of distilleries and visitor attractions develops across the island of Ireland. The employment potential is significant as guided tours and restaurants are labour intensive operations. In Scotland it is estimated that there is a five to one radio of export value to direct tourism.”