Gordon & MacPhail unveils name of Speyside-based distillery in UK

UK’s Scotch whisky bottler and distiller Gordon & MacPhail has named its new Speyside-based distillery, expected to open in spring 2022, ‘The Cairn’.

Construction works for the distillery began in July. Due to the coronavirus outbreak, the company delayed works at the site.

Gordon & MacPhail brands director Ian Chapman said: “We have put the consumer right at the heart of the process of creating the brand, as we have with the design of the distillery itself.

“We wanted to make sure it was clearly Scottish, but easy for consumers to pronounce and to spell. This will be particularly important for our international markets when English is not the first language.”

Upon completion, The Cairn distillery will feature tasting rooms, coffee shop, retail space as well as visitor experience centre.

Once operational, it will also be the first distillery in the Cairngorms National Park since its establishment in 2003.

This is the second distillery for the company and comes after the acquisition and subsequent overhaul of the Benromach Distillery.

Chapman added: “We also had to be mindful of Benromach, our other distillery. We wanted the new brand to complement, not compete.

“The brand is eye-catching and contemporary and the approach to develop it put the consumer at the centre of our thinking. It is the same approach we have taken to designing The Cairn Distillery itself.

“The modern building takes advantage of the outstanding views across the River Spey to the Cairngorms and has been designed with the customer at the centre of the experience.”