The makers of the award-winning Shortcross Gin have announced plans to develop a brand new premium Irish Whiskey.
Rademon Estate Distillery, based in County Down, Northern Ireland has revealed plans to develop a new Irish Malt Whiskey. This summer, the first casks of their new small batch Irish whiskey have been sealed and production is now getting under way, with 100 barrels expected to be casked within the first year.
This phase of the Distillery development completes a sizeable £1.5M investment to date, while the continued expansion of the Distillery over the next three years will represent a total investment of over £4M, creating up to six new jobs.
Northern Ireland’s first and only craft distillery and the producer of the multi award-winning Shortcross Gin, Rademon Estate Distillery has made a big impact in the burgeoning craft spirits market since its launch. Founded in 2012 by husband and wife team Fiona and David Boyd-Armstrong, Rademon Estate Distillery is located at the couple’s historic family estate just outside Downpatrick, Co. Down.
To develop the new product, the company has been supported with a £50,000 grant through Invest NI’s R&D Boosting Business scheme to develop the background technology, process and skills to enable the method of production to be developed. Invest NI’s research and development support is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the Sustainable Competitiveness Programme for Northern Ireland.
Rademon Estate Distillery also plans a further investment in excess of £2.5M to put to work larger Pot Stills and associated equipment that will give the distillery a capacity of 35,000 litres of pure alcohol per annum. They hope to create a unique Visitor Experience Centre as part of this investment as the business expands over the next three years.
Fiona Boyd-Armstrong, Managing Director of Rademon Estate Distillery said: “The research and development behind the creation of our Irish Whiskey has been extensive and the valuable support from Invest NI has helped us reach this exciting stage. We are proud to announce this project and that this will be amongst the first Irish Whiskeys to be distilled in Northern Ireland.”
All aspects of production for the new Irish malt whiskey, from grain to glass, will be performed on site with no third party spirit being used. The whiskey will be matured in a variety of casks, which the distillery hope will allow new and innovative flavours and aromas to be created and water from the estate’s own well will be used.
David Boyd-Armstrong, Head Distiller and Operations Director of Rademon Estate Distillery said: “I am thrilled we have developed what I know will be a fantastic Irish Malt Whiskey and I’m greatly looking forward to August 2018 when we will be able to sample our first three year old Irish Malt Whiskey. This style of whiskey is a personal favourite of mine due to the complex flavour profile and I feel it is under represented in the market.”
Parties interested in purchase or distribution of Rademon Estate Distillery’s first release of their Irish Malt Whiskey can register their interest by emailing sales@shortcrossgin.com. A number of casks have already been pre-ordered, with additional casks being sold over the coming months.
Over the coming months, Rademon Estate Distillery will expand their team, doubling their current workforce from four to eight employees, with at least a further two posts expected to be created in the future as the expansion of the distillery continues, bringing the total number of employees to 10.
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