The Clydeside
Distillery on the banks of the River
Clyde opens its doors to the public for
the first time today.
Whisky
production returned to the banks of the
River Clyde in Glasgow on the 7th
November when the first spirit flowed
from the stills of The Clydeside
Distillery and today The Clydeside
officially opened its doors to visitors
for the first time.
Sitting on the site formerly known as
The Queen’s Dock, once the beating heart
of Glasgow’s shipping industry, The Pump
House, with its famous clock tower,
houses a 5-star visitor centre with
interactive whisky experience, shop and
café.
Opposite The Pump House is the new
modern still house which houses a 1.5
tonne Semi Lauter mash tun, 8 stainless
steel wash backs, a 7,500 litre wash
still and a 5,000 litre spirit still
which were crafted by the
internationally-renowned Scottish
coppersmiths, Forsyths of Moray and are
capable of producing 500,000 litres of
Lowland single malt Scotch whisky per
year.
Visitors taking the three part Clydeside
Tour can see Glasgow’s links to the
whisky industry brought to life through
words, pictures and film as they make
their way through 140 years of history
as part of a self-led and guided tour.
The Pump House once controlled entry
into The Queen’s Dock, one of the city’s
most famous shipping ports built by
Morrison and Mason in 1877. This ensured
Customs and Excise could keep a close
eye on goods in and out, including
Scotch whisky.
For the second part of The Clydeside
Tour an expert guide will show you
around Clydeside Distillery itself. Meet
the distillery's craftsmen as they
handcraft pure new make spirit using
traditional methods and time-honoured
skills while enjoying the spectacular
view over the Clyde from the gleaming
contemporary Still House.
Finally, to round off the tour, you can
savour Three Wee Drams from across
Scotland in Tasting Room with the help
of the expert guide and at the end of
your tour, you will have the chance to
purchase your favourite dram to take
home from the distillery shop.
The Clydeside
Tour Pricing:
Adults £15 per person
Concessions: £13 per person
Children age (8-17 years): £5 per child
Family tickets from £33
The Queen's
Dock Tour:
There is also an exclusive, tailor-made
Queen's Dock Tour which is only
available for up to six guests upon request
and lasts 1 hour 40 minutes and features
even more drams in the premium Blender's
Room. There will be opportunities to
arrange private and VIP tours to do so
call 0141 212 1404.
The Clydeside Distillery is owned by
Morrison Glasgow Distillers Ltd, who's
Chairman, Tim Morrison is the great
grandson of John Morrison, who
originally built The Queen’s Dock in
1877. Tim, formerly of Morrison Bowmore
Distillers is current proprietor of the
AD Rattray Scotch Whisky Company.
The project to transform The Pump House
into an operational whisky distillery
began in 2012 and has been spearheaded
by Tim and his son Andrew, the
distillery’s Commercial Director.
Tim Morrison said: "This is an exciting
day for Glasgow and the Scotch whisky
industry. After more than a century
copper stills are producing spirit on
the banks of the Clyde and we’re
incredibly proud to be able to open our
doors to the public.
"Glasgow has an affinity with Scotch
whisky unlike any other city in the
world with The Queen’s Dock previously
witnessing the exports of whisky with
ships sailing past the Pump House
destined for all continents of the
world.
"Of course for me and my family there is
a very personal link knowing that my
great grandfather built The Queen’s Dock
where The Clydeside Distillery now sits.
We’re looking forward to the future and
seeing whisky produced in the heart of
Glasgow once again.”
Andrew Morrison said: "This project has
been a labour of love and I’m very proud
to see The Clydeside Distillery now
open. Today marks the culmination of a
long-standing vision to put Glasgow back
on the Scotch whisky map.
"We are passionate about using
traditional methods to produce our
whisky, albeit with a bit of modern
technology. We’re combining this with
the skills of our distillers to ensure
we stay true to the techniques employed
for hundreds of years.
"We want to welcome everyone, from
Glasgow natives and Scottish whisky
lovers to international whisky
enthusiasts, tourists and those who are
visiting the city. Glasgow has a long
and special relationship with Scotch
whisky and our visitor experience will
bring this to life."
Around 25 jobs have been created at The
Clydeside Distillery with Alistair
McDonald, Distillery Manager, using over
30 years of knowledge and experience to
oversee all aspects of whisky
production. Having previously worked for
Beam Suntory as Distillery Manager at
Auchentoshan, Islay-native Alistair,
began his career as an Apprentice
Distillery Engineer at Bowmore
Distillery. As Visitor Centre Manager,
Bridgeen Mullen will manage the
day-to-day running of the attraction
which includes a team of tour guides, as
well as the retail and catering teams.
The distillery is also capable of
hosting a variety of events, from
wedding receptions to corporate drinks
functions and dinners. The tasting room,
located on the mezzanine level, opens up
to create a stunning, bespoke space for
40-200 guests.
As I said
The Clydeside opened for visits from the
public today, tours will last approx. 20
minutes and will start once every hour,
on the hour during the week and twice
every hour at weekends.
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