Sept 22 Newsletter
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Making Whisky History in John O’Groats - 13 September 2022
THE REALLY EXCITING ONE!
This is the newsletter we’ve all been waiting for!
It’s happened - we are now officially a whisky distillery! We’ve filled our first cask of new make spirit and it’s now happily resting in our warehouse waiting for the magic of whisky maturation to happen.
We were joined by John Ramsay for this iconic moment and we’re delighted to get his seal of approval on our new make spirit.
It was fascinating to nose the samples throughout the heart of the spirit run and see how the aromas changed from light fruity notes at the start of the cut through to berry fruits and vanilla/crème brulee in the middle, before some more floral notes came through towards the final cut point.
A very special day making whisky history in John O’Groats with the first cask in a bonded warehouse in 185 years!
Cask Number One is an American Oak, first-fill Sherry Butt, seasoned with Oloroso wine - after an eventful couple of years you can see it was a very happy moment for us indeed! ;-)
We have so many thank you’s to make it would sound like an Oscar’s speech! So rather than have a long list of names here we just want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has helped create the distillery and make this possible. But we have to give a particular shout out to our team - Ryan, Gregor, Libby, Andy and Koryn who have been working very hard over the last few months to help us create something exceptional.
And of course a huge thank you to all the members of the 874 Club who have helped make this dream a reality. We’re so happy to have you all with us on our journey - your support has been incredible through some challenging times and we are delighted we now have spirit flowing through the stills for you to enjoy in the coming years.
So the next questions on your lips will be - When can I come and visit? When will my cask be filled?
We’ve now opened the doors to the gift shop and whisky lounge so you can come and visit us in John O’Groats for a dram, whisky cocktail or a coffee and have a look at our range of 8 Doors products from Glencairn glasses to branded T-Shirts. Or just relax and enjoy the amazing view from our windows! We’ll share details of our tour schedule once it’s available.
Cask owners - you’ll also get an email in the next couple of weeks confirming your cask filling dates where you will be welcome to come to the distillery and fill your cask. We can’t wait to meet you all!
If you’ve been following our journey from afar and have an interest in being part of the 874 Club we have a small number of bottle packages remaining. These packages include a bottle of our inaugural spirit as well as a limited edition collection of 3 bottles. For more details or to place an order - check out this page on our website. But be quick - we don’t expect the remaining packages to be around for long!
874 Club Members - keep an eye on your inbox for another exciting email coming soon!