Every distillery that I research and review on this blog has interesting stories about their methods, history, ownerships and unique whiskey styles. Deanston might just take the cake when it comes to innovation and interest for me. That may be surprising to many given that the big distilleries have such interesting facts about them.
Interesting Fact #1
Deanston distillery is the only power independent distillery in Scotland. It produces enough hydro power to not only run the workings of the distillery, but also to feed some power back into the grid!
Interesting Fact #2
Each year, the Deanston produces a limited production of organic whiskey. They use virgin oak casks, producing a lighter vanilla and cereal note whiskey (which comes out in their other expressions as well). In order to achieve organic status, they must do a complete cleaning of the distillery before the production run, and ensure there is no contamination from any piece of equipment or cask. An expensive venture! From an innovative standpoint Deanston has been producing organic whiskey since the early 2000’s, long before it became popular in mainstream society.
Interesting Fact #3
In the 1800’s, Deanston used to be a cotton mill. They used to stamp their own coins used to pay their workers. The workers could then use these coins in the local shops to purchase goods, as currency was in short supply. This ensured that the workers were able to get paid on time, at a time in history where there were no guarantees for workers. How innovative!
While Deanston is not the largest producing distillery in Scotland, it really does a great job of setting themselves apart from their competition with these innovations. Care for their environment, ingredients and community make Deanston one of the most interesting distilleries that I have studied to date. It will certainly make my visit list on my next Scotland visit.