Drinks firm in visitor centre move

GIN, whisky and beer maker Eden Mill has lodged plans for a new visitor experience.

It is part of the Fife company’s move to create a distillery and brewery at former paper mill buildings on the University of St Andrews’ Eden Campus in Guardbridge.

The Eden Mill plan is for a premium visitor experience offering to attract tourists and local customers, it said.

The facility will comprise whisky and gin tours, gin blending, a retail outlet and a cafe bar.

It will focus on the sustainable and environmentally positive aspects of what is claimed will be Scotland’s first scale carbon positive distillery.

It is anticipated approximately 50,000 visitors will visit the site each year with a peak weekly figure of 1,500 expected during summer months.

Eden Mill, set up in 2012, said 40 per cent of the visitors would be expected at weekends.

Based on 20,000 visitors in 2017 to its previous distillery, more than two-thirds of visitors arrived by public transport or taxi and the firm said this is expected to continue.

“The cafe will be open for use for other visitors on the site, however this is unlikely to be a significant element of the business,” planning papers state.

“The VIP visitor areas will be used for entertaining top trade customers and private cask owners, plus local businesses who may utilise this facility for team meetings.”

Paul Miller, co-founder of Eden Mill, said: “At this new site, Eden Mill will be in the perfect position to invest in new products and lead the way with innovation.”

“We firmly believe this development will greatly benefit the local area and the wider Scottish economy, which is always what we have set out to achieve as a business.”

It comes after the firm opened a 1,900 square foot store in the Silverburn shopping centre in Glasgow.