Dunnet Bay distillery
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| Location | Dunnet, Caithness KW14 8XD, Scotland, United Kingdom |
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| Coordinates | 58°37′19″N 3°20′40″W / 58.6219°N 3.3444°W |
| Owner | Dunnet Bay Distillers Ltd. |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Founder | Martin Murray Claire Murray |
| Status | Operational |
| No. of stills | 2 x 500 litre pot stills |
| Website | dunnetbaydistillers |
| Location | |
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Dunnet Bay distillery is a gin distillery in Dunnet, Caithness, Scotland. It is the most northerly distillery on the mainland of Great Britain.[1]
The distillery's principal product is Rock Rose gin, though it also produces vodka and rum. A second site, a disused grain mill next to the distillery headquarters, has been converted,[2] in order to expand into single malt whisky.
Dunnet Bay distillery was founded in 2014 by couple Claire and Martin Murray. Martin Murray had previously worked in oil and gas for TotalEnergies and BP; Claire Murray had been in hospitality.[3][4]
Clearing work on the site began in 2012. A still was purchased to exacting specifications from John Dore & Co., which would be nicknamed 'Margret', after the co-founder's mother.[5] The first spirit run was in August 2014. A second still, nicknamed 'Elizabeth', was added later the same year. This still was named after Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.[6]
The distillery was named 'Scottish Distillery of the Year' at the 2019 Scottish Gin Awards.[7] An environmental manager was appointed in 2021, and the distillery was subsequently awarded 'Environmental/Sustainability Business of the Year' by the Federation of Small Businesses in 2022.[8]
The company acquired a second site, the B-listed Castletown Mill, in 2021, to act as an extension of their head office.[9] In 2022, they applied for planning permission to convert the Castletown site into a whisky distillery.[10] The conversion of the site began in 2023.[11]