Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

VIDEO: Dundee’s first new distillery in almost 200 years launches Verdant Gin

Dundee’s first distillery in almost 200 years has been opened by a former creative director with Formula 1 team McLaren.

Andrew Mackenzie, 63, a former lecturer, has set up Verdant Spirit Co, which formally launched its first tipple, Verdant Dry Gin, on Monday.

Andrew Mackenzie inspecting the latest bottles.
Andrew Mackenzie inspecting the latest bottles.

Originally from London, his passion for victuals led him to Abertay University, where he completed a Master’s degree in food and drink innovation.

He said inspiration for the brand came while studying at the university.

Mr Mackenzie said: “I started to look at the white spirits industry in Scotland.

“I wrote a small paper and got really interested in the home cocktail market and saw nobody was doing premium products. My background is in high value brands – I was a creative director with McLaren – so know about that.”

Sbro_Dundee_Gin_Dundee-11.jpg

“Food and drink is my passion and that’s what brought me to Dundee to do my Master’s.”

Mr Mackenzie said he believes Dundee is the perfect place to launch the drink. Although the distillery’s first drink is gin, he hopes to extend the range to include vodka, rum, vermouth and—a distant dream—rye whisky.

He has installed a small but versatile 500 litre (110 gallon) still in a former factory engine house and plans are being drawn up to create a visitor centre and shop to be opened later this year.

The bottling process.
The bottling process.

He received his final food standards approval certificate last week and Verdant Dry Gin will be in selected off-licences this week and available on the firm’s website.

Royal Mile Whiskies, the Edinburgh-based firm who also operate the Drinkmonger chain, have taken a first order of 120 bottles and Andrew has high hopes for Dundee’s first distillery since 1826.

Dundee’s one and only previous distillery was Dudhope, which stood on the south side of Lochee Road just downhill from Dudhope Castle.

It distilled whisky, initially under Pat Alexander and Co from 1817 to 1818, continued under the name Dudhope Distilling Co and finally under John Morris from 1825 to 1826.

It is thought it became Dudhope Brewery some years later.

It has often puzzled historians as to why Dundee only had that one early distillery, while Perth, Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh, had many.

One possible reason would be shortage of good water.

Sbro_Dundee_Gin_Dundee-10.jpg

However, Dundee later became one of six Scottish port cities allowed to export whisky, which led to a booming trade in blending, warehousing and exporting, with many famous whiskies—such as Watson’s No 10—being shipped from Dundee.

The last firm still in Dundee was Stewart & Son of Dundee Ltd, who made Cream of the Barley and moved to Dumbarton about 20 years ago.


Richard Rooney samples Verdant Gin.
Richard Rooney samples Verdant Gin.

Pride shines through

Andrew Mackenzie’s new gin didn’t need to do too much to win my approval, writes Richard Rooney.

The truth is, I’ve yet to meet a bottle I didn’t like.

While others agonise over the precise mix of botanicals, my chief concern when it comes to gin is making sure I don’t have to wait too long for my next one.

But even a heathen like me was able to appreciate the care and attention that has gone into this new product.

At 43% ABV, it certainly packs a punch and I enjoyed its refreshing citrus flavour.

I can see it being a summer favourite in Dundee and beyond.