Raising a glass to the past
Issued: Fri, 29 Oct 2010 11:55:00 BST
A local entrepreneur is helping to breathe new life into the proud Scottish tradition of whisky-making by resurrecting a long derelict Scottish distillery in Dumfries and Galloway.
In 2007 David Thomson purchased the old distillery, which first opened in the 1830's and remained at the forefront of lowland whisky production until its closure in 1919. Now, the newly formed Annandale Distillery Company Ltd. is a step closer to restoring the historic distillery buildings to their former glory with a new whisky brand, an online visitor ‘experience', and plans to create a new single malt lowland Scotch whisky.
Financial assistance from Historic Scotland and The Scottish Government has helped start the project, but David was keen to identify academics to help to undertake historical research pertaining to the locale of the distillery and culture in its area.
'As well as producing high quality whisky, it is important that the brand has meaning and value,' says David. The research that he and the team from Glasgow are undertaking involves delving into areas such as the evolution and history of the lowland Scots language, and is central to the integrity of the brand ethos and in the development of a memorable online visitor experience.
David was introduced to Professor John Corbett, a renowned linguist who specialises in Scots language studies, through Interface, an organisation that connects businesses and academia. After discussions with David over his vision, Professor Corbett used his knowledge of the Scots tongue to produce authentic text with a contemporary twist for Annandale's promotional material and website.
Following this successful collaboration Annandale then enlisted the help of University of Glasgow archaeologists to assess the original distillery and David is now a step closer to restoring the historic buildings to their former glory.
This project was funded by a First Step Award, the University's funding programme which is dedicated to helping companies and academics work together, the money allowed University researchers to investigate the history of the building.
The information gathered will now be used to form part of the visitor centre, which will add to the appreciation of the distillery by visitors. The project will also inform the design process of the planned development work.
David Thomson, who now owns the Annandale Distillery, said: 'The work conducted by the University was completed to a very high standard. I feel that this is academia at its very best! Indeed, I was so impressed with their work that I've just commissioned another £45,000 worth of work, this time at my own expense.'
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