Press Release

For Immediate Release

The Distillery Phoenix

In a move straight out of Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein two defunct distilleries are coming back from the dead to become a new living distillery on the whisky Isle of Islay.

Maverick private distiller Bruichladdich, has announced plans to build on the site of a long departed distillery in the pretty seaside village of Port Charlotte.

The original Port Charlotte distillery was built in 1829. Shortly after it’s name changed to Lochindaal and in 1929 due to Prohibition it closed for ever.

Mark Reynier, CEO of Bruichladdich Distillery – itself a reborn distillery as recent as 2001 – explains the project:

“As progressive Hebridean distillers, we believe strongly in the Islay Appellation, and artisanal distilling. One set of stills was never going to be enough for us.”

“This new distillery will allow us to diversify our skills, provide new options and allow further scope for our new ideas. We rather enjoy distilling.”

The distilling equipment for the Port Charlotte project, already acquired, comes from another closed distillery.

“It was Jim’s idea. In 2003 Inverleven Distillery was to be demolished, so why not bring it to Islay? Obvious really…”

The entire single malt plant was dismantled, bolt by bolt, by a team of ten of Bruichladdich’s finest “engineers” (crofters) under Duncan McGillivray.

The machinery was shipped to the island on barges where it has been in storage ever since - with some parts used for spares.

The new full-sized Port Charlotte distillery, once re-erected within existing distillery buildings, will have a maximum capacity of 1.2m litres. This is no micro-distillery.

“We have the chance to create an entirely ‘green’ distillery, with a genuinely zero carbon footprint by using all the latest environmentally sustainable concepts.”

“The environmental movement is strong on the theory, but weak in the practice. It will be quite an engineering challenge to see what really is possible.”

In a further twist, when a distillery is built usually a decade passes before there is anything to sell. In this case when the stills run there will already be eight years’ stock in the warehouses.

The far-sighted folk at Bruichladdich have been distilling Port Charlotte whisky, a heavily peated single malt, since 2001 down the road at their own distillery.

With Diageo, the industry’s biggest player, announcing a whopping £40m plan for a new mega distillery in Speyside, some fear the dawn of an era of distilling centralisation. Bruichladdich with their Port Charlotte project appear to be going in the entirely opposite direction - again.

“We like to be original. Our distillery, of course, will be an altogether more modest affair.”



Notes to Editors

Images: http://www.bruichladdich.com/trade/images.htm

PR contact Mark +44 7799346137

Islay has 8 distilleries such as Ardbeg, Laphroaig and Lagavulin

In 2001 Bruichladdich was reopened and in 1996 a farm Distillery was launched

There are 90 single malt distilleries in Scotland

Isle of Islay is located 70 miles due west of Glasgow

In 2003 Bruichladdich was spied on by US Government Defense Threat Reduction Agency for WMD. Attention was drawn to the distillery by the above barges of distilling equipment on the River Clyde, home of Britain’s nuclear submarine base

Bruichladdich was reopened in May 2001. The company returned its first profits in 2004, doubled in 2005 and have exceeded forecasted levels in 2006. All profits are reinvested.

Bruichladdich is a private, Scottish company controlling 0.5% of single malt capacity

The First Turf will be cut on Bruichladdich open day Sunday 27th May during the Islay Whisky Festival.