Day: 10 January 2025

Isle of Tiree Distillery has launched its inaugural whisky, the first legal single malt whisky produced on the Hebridean island of Tiree in over two centuries. 

Founded in 2012 by trad folk musicians, Alain Campbell and Ian Smith, Tiree Whisky Company Ltd aims to preserve and promote Tiree’s whisky heritage, whilst reviving distilling on the island. 

Once known as Tìr an Eòrna, which translates from Gaelic to the ‘Land of Barley’, Tiree was home to no less than fifty illicit distilleries before the 1800s. However – unlike other islands – Tiree never re-established a distillery until 2019 when Alain and Ian lit the stills of the Isle of Tiree Distillery for the first time. 

Isle of Tiree Distillery is one of Scotland’s smallest whisky distilleries which uses traditional whisky production methods to produce 2,000 litres of pure alcohol per year (LPA). Each part of the process is handcrafted using methods of the past but with an enthusiastic vision for the future of the island.

Ian Smith, co-founder of Tiree Whisky Company says: 

“This is an important moment in the island’s history as we reconnect with an industry that was once such an important part of island life. As well as providing local employment, we hope that our distillery will encourage visitors from all over the world to come to our home on Tiree.”

Alain Campbell, co-founder of Tiree Whisky Company, added:

“We created our distillery to bring whisky production back to the island and this will be the first single malt whisky from Tiree in over 200 years. The distilling heritage of our island has inspired us since we were kids and we are immensely proud to bring whisky back to Tiree.

“We have strived to keep our production methods true to our ancestors – we use most traditional methods along with grain, water, fire and gravity – that’s all we need.”

“We hand mash laureate malted barley in mesh mash bags – hoisted high on wooden blocks to lauter clear the wort into our oak mash tun. This is followed by an extra-long fermentation in our oak washbacks. First distillations take place in our wide copper washstills, followed by carefully distilling the spirit in our 300L spirit still. And then age our whisky in small casks and our maturation happens right on the rocky Tiree coastline.”

This first release of Isle of Tiree Single Malt Scotch Whisky is limited to only 800 bottles and retails at £199.99. Last year, an initial pre-sale of 400 bottles sold out in less than two hours, meaning those who want to get their hands on this first release will need to act quickly. 

The first 10 bottles will be reserved and sold at auction from the 31st of January. A

10% of profits from the auction will be donated to local island charities.

Isle of Tiree Single Malt Scotch Whisky is available exclusively on their website at www.tyreegin.com/whisky

Link here to high res imagery

Moss, a new farm to table restaurant owned by Chef Director,Henry Dobson is set to open in Stockbridge on 29th January with over 90 products sourced directly from Dobson’s Scottish  family farm.

The 26-cover scandi-inspired minimalist dining room has been designed by Henry and his artist wife, Akiko, featuring their own home-made textured paint, using ash from farm-sourced hardwood, that gives the impression of exposed concrete. The tables have also been built by Henry using wood from wind-fallen Lime trees, with crockery made by Akiko, who specialises in ceramics, using clay from the farm.

The a la carte menu will be based on the best of the fresh and preserved harvest from the farm in Angus and a network of local producers including Phantassie Organic Farm in East Lothian, Butchery at Bowhouse in the East Neuk of Fife with foragables, game, meat, vegetables and herbs sourced from the farm. Taking inspiration from his travels in Scandinavia and East Asia, as well as from the diverse cultures in his team, the dishes will be ingredient-led and will constantly evolve depending on what produce is available. The menu that has 100% of its produce source from Scotland will feature beef dripping, bone marrow and garum focaccia, duck smoked using shavings from the dining tables, ceviche cooked with acid from wild sorrel, and the fluffiest chiffon cake outside of Japan. Furthermore the drinks list will focus solely on British made natural and low intervention wines, beers and spirits with producers like Westwell, Domaine Hugo and Henners featuring prominently on the wine list, as well as house made infusions, kombuchas and caffeinated hot beverages using roasted barley koji and British grown tea. 

Dobson and his team bring a wealth of fine dining experience, having worked at some of the finest restaurants across the UK and beyond, including Noma in Copenhagen, The Ledbury and Pollen Street Social in London and Heron in Edinburgh. 

Henry Dobson says,

“Moss is the culmination of two years of solid R&D and I can’t wait to open our doors and share our perspective on what we think is possible with Scotland’s diverse palette of ingredients. My team and I are excited to amalgamate the best of Scotland’s local makers and producers and find our niche amongst the incredible scene of restaurants in Edinburgh. This project has already been such a personal journey for my family and I. From our six month R&D trip to Japan, to Akiko and I digging clay out of ditches for the tableware, to sieving ash for the paint, to bucking, milling and joining the table tops all the way to foraging our vast library of preserved ingredients from my family farm.”

Henry trained at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Cork and three Michelin-star restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, where he became fascinated with slow food ideology and preserving and fermenting seasonal ingredients to use in dishes and drinks throughout the year. Working with a network of specialist producers, the drinks list will only feature British makers and the menu will use only Scottish suppliers.

Working in London as a head chef and sound engineer in the music industry, his dual passions for creating art and gastronomy synthesised into a dream to open his own restaurant where he could source materials direct from producers and his family farm. Having studied food production, his exploration of hospitality and service techniques saw him move to Japan to take a residency in ceramics and working at both two Michelin-star Maz, studying the approach and techniques of Virgilio Martinez, and at 1 Michelin-star Kabi where he learnt their unusual preservation techniques and worked with ultra high-quality Japanese produce.

Moss will open Wednesday – Saturday for a set lunch and a la carte dinner service with reservations opening soon. Follow Moss_edinburgh on instagram for updates.

Moss

112 St Stephen Street

Edinburgh

EH3 5AD