Slàinte Mhath
Bladnoch is Scotland’s most southerly distillery – and possibly its hardiest
THERE’S an idiom a good friend of mine employs to summon resilience when the going gets tough and there seems no end. “Everything passes,” he says.
It’s very fitting for the turn of an annus horribilis where society remains benighted in the shadow of a pandemic. And the hopeful sentiment won’t be lost on our Scotch industry either, with a rich history of bounce-backability and stoic analogies to take heart from.
Case in point is Bladnoch, Scotland's most southerly distillery.
Its unofficial motto must be “never say die”. “Standing on the banks of the River Bladnoch, some 50 miles west of Dumfries, Bladnoch’s 200-year history and its solid agricultural founds have weathered wild vagaries of market and global forces,” a local historian told me on a recent visit.
“Bladnoch was established as a farm distillery in 1817 by brothers John and Thomas Mcclelland, gaining its first licence in 1825. It changed hands several times and experienced periods of closure. The reins were taken by Belfast distiller Dunville & Co, who operated it until 1937, though there were several periods of inactivity during those economically troubled inter-war years.”
A whirlwind tour of its recent past makes for a more turbulent read. In 1983, it was purchased by Arthur Bell & Sons of Perth.
Bell’s was taken over by Guinness two years later, and Bladnoch found itself a small cog in a global leviathan. Then, in 1993, Bladnoch closed. Northern Irish entrepreneur Raymond Armstrong and his brother Colin acquired the site in October 1994 and the stills flowed once again six years later.
Under the Armstrong regime, both unpeated and peated spirit were nurtured, and a variety of expressions were released. 2014, however, saw the Armstrongs place Bladnoch into administration, reportedly after disagreements about the future direction of the business.
Once again the distillery dug into its phoenix-like credentials, and in July 2015 Australian dairy magnate David Prior raised Bladnoch from the ashes after falling in love with its rocky history.
“I could see that there was something there but my wife walked through and she thought that I’d absolutely gone crazy!” David says “She thought there were more issues than opportunities.”
Indeed, back in 2015, Bladnoch’s potential was not
“Like a tranquil pool in the bend of a river
universally apparent after such an on-off backdrop. However, David saw scope to combine hard-headed business with the romance of a product close to his heart.
“I saw the Scotch whisky category as a great opportunity from a business perspective but it is also a huge passion of mine,” he said.
“It’s something that I have been involved in since I was 18 years old. My father and I used to have a drink together at the end of every week and share stories.
“I’ve grown up in a quite a Scotch-drinking household!” David says.
Thanks to that passion and substantial investment, Bladnoch is enjoying stability and rude health.
And instead of looking to the rollercoaster decades that have gone before, this distillery is looking to the future – one year at time.
Dr Nick Savage, master distiller, takes up the tale. “Our Waterfall Collection, which we’ve just launched, gives us the opportunity to develop a whisky in a very fluid way,” Nick says. “It highlights the maturation journey a single whisky can take in five years.
“Each year between now and 2024/5 we will decide the cask types for the next stage of the waterfall maturation, but only when we fully understand how our whisky has evolved and matured in cask.
“This enables us to present the journey of this finite and ever reducing liquid, and showcase how the quality of whisky is assured at Bladnoch, like never before.”
Because it will only be decided what the next cask type will be at the end of each year, ultimately this approach means the final whisky is yet to be defined.
I can’t help but reflect, that, after such turbulent past, taking the next stage a step at a time, with great care, focus and passion, can yield only good results. Perhaps another fitting message for our times... The owner of Bladnoch may be a hard-nosed businessman, but his appreciation of the past and the local surroundings have drawn out his inner philosopher.
“In the rapid flow of life there are moments of stillness,” David Prior says. “In the quiet reflection by a roaring open fire, the deep connection between friends sharing a great Scotch. Like a tranquil pool in the bend of a rushing river. For me, this is the spirit of Bladnoch. For over 200 years: Still, in flow.”