The team has reserved this first liquid for release as a limited-edition available exclusively to Distil’s shareholders in the summer, with more details to follow soon.

Distillation took place using Blackwoods gin recipe, using local Scottish botanicals – kelp, sea buckthorn and water mint. Ardgowan’s distiller, Ross Bradley, led the distillation with support from Distil’s Master Distiller, Sion Edwards.

Distil Master Distillery Sion Edwards and Ardgowan Distillery’s Ross Bradley

This milestone is marked by the announcement of the naming of the gin still – “Marie”. The name was chosen by visitors to the first annual Ardgowan Open Day in July 2023, who voted from a shortlist of names evoking local history. Marie was the outright winner on the day, chosen to honour the memory of Marie Lamont, one of the youngest women to have been subject to the 17th century Inverkip witch trials.

Distil Master Distiller Sion Edwards and Marketing Director Sarah Kingsbury

The first distillation cements Blackwoods’ move to its new brand home at Ardgowan, and kicks-off a programme of new product development for the brand, which will be showcased at the distillery’s visitor experience.

Martin McAdam, CEO Ardgowan Distillery Company, said: “Our teams have been working hard to reach this milestone and we’re delighted to be able to announce the successful first distillation of Blackwoods. I look forward to further deepening the relationship with the Distil team as we welcome Blackwoods to its new home at Ardgowan.”

Ardgowan investor Roland Grain and Distil Marketing Director Sarah Kingsbury

Sarah Kingsbury, Marketing Director at Distil, commented: “This is a significant milestone not only for Blackwoods as a brand, but for Distil’s relationship with Ardgowan Distillery Company.

We were delighted to be on-site for the first distillation which successfully took place under the guidance of Sion Edwards, and to taste and craft the first liquid together with him and Ross Bradley. We look forward to making this available to shareholders, and pushing forward with our planned programme of new product development.

In tandem with this, we are delighted to reveal “Marie” as the name of the still. The Ardgowan Estate and surrounding area is rich with Scottish history, and to be able to honour a key local character is fantastic.

Works continue on-site to fit out the Blackwoods visitor experience, and we look forward to sharing further updates in the near future.”