Outlander star Sam Heughan wants new Scotch whisky region - as he launches his Galloway distillery
Actor and author Sam Heughan had some thoughts on a new Scotch whisky region while opening his distillery in Galloway.
Actor Sam Heughan has called for Galloway to be recognised as its own whisky region, as he opened his own rebranded distillery.
The Outlander star was speaking to The Scotsman at the launch of his distillery in Newton Stewart. Mr Heughan has bought and rebranded the former Crafty Distillery, which is where his Sassenach Wild Scottish gin has been made since its launch in 2023.
Speaking to a launch event, where the actor filled the first Galloway distillery cask, Mr Heughan said: “We had a number of different sites that we were looking at [for a distillery], but honestly this just felt right. The guys here are local boys, I am a local boy and I just loved working with them. We realised, this is an opportunity and we decided that Galloway needs its own distillery, its own brand.
“I think Scotland itself needs a new region and I think that Galloway should be its own region. It’s such an amazing place. It’s very different to the rest of Scotland.
“It’s 12 miles from Ireland, you can see the lights of Ireland. You can see the Isle of Man, you can see England - the Lake District - across the Solway Firth. It has a history of Vikings here and the Romans, the Gaels. It really is a very special place.
“The Lowland [whisky] region has become such a large area and I think it needs more categorisation. There are a couple of other distilleries here. We’d love to perhaps start working with them to create a Galloway distillery tour. There’s so much to explore here and I really think it’s an undiscovered place.”
When it comes to whisky from the distillery - Crafty distillery had been making the Billy&Co product - Mr Heughan said the team was on an exploration of Galloway whisky. He said: “We have hundreds of barrels already that we have been laying down [to mature] but the first one, as the Galloway distillery, is a PX cask.
“We’re going to have a real exploration of what is good Galloway whisky. We’re also growing our own barley, we have a couple of fields of barley here. At some point we’d love to do a single malt. There’s a lot of ideas out there, but I think, perhaps, the first whisky release will be a blend as a single malt takes time. But we’re getting there and I am really excited.
“When you try our new make, I’m really amazed to see where it goes when it’s been aged in wood as it’s got some really interesting tropical fruit flavours in it. We’ll see what happens when it sits in a delicious sherry cask for a number of years.”
The actor wants the new blended whisky to be “something slightly different” to the Sassenach blend already for sale. He said: “We’ve got this beautiful Sassenach whisky, which is a great blend, but I don’t know how we’re going to finish it [the new blend]. We’ve a few avenues. I love wine barrels, I think they’d be really interesting. Maybe a dessert wine [cask], who knows.”
The actor’s new distillery is also set to launch his Sassenach vodka, a new addition to the range of spirits that includes the Sassenach Wild Scottish gin, Sassenach blended whisky and El Tequileno Sassenach Select Reposado tequila.
Speaking of the new vodka, Mr Heughan said: “We go to the nth degree. [Master distiller and commercial director] Craig [Rankin] is a master at what he does.
“Looking at the gin process, we have freeze drying botanicals, we’re creating resins, we’re really going in depth. The Sassenach vodka is the best of Scottish produce.
“We use wheat from Galloway. I looked at different types of vodka as I wasn't much of a vodka fan, but I really dug into it and realised that Scotland produces amazing wheat. We realised that apples and brambles add a real crisp freshness to it, a brightness. The brambles also add a richness to it. It’s very luxurious vodka, really delicious. I think we’ll have a lot of converts when they try this one.”
Mr Rankin said the creation of the vodka was as much of a passion project for the team and Mr Heughan, as the creation of the gin.
He said: “Every product in the Sassenach range, I can’t stress this enough, Sam is a true artisan and he’s really involved in the development.
“The Sassenach Wild Scottish Gin took us 13 months - there were over 100 recipes, pioneering techniques and WhatsApps at 3am about toasting oats a wee bit more. He’s a tortured artisan, but make no mistake this is not a fame-led brand. He is very much part of the process.
“We’ve been working on the vodka for the last seven months. Vodka is a relatively tasteless, flavourless pure spirit, it should be easy, but that’s it’s biggest fault.
“How can you feel like this is a special product if it’s relatively tasteless and flavourless? We spent months distilling everything - every field, every grain type and nothing was landing, nothing felt special. We started looking at the brambles that are draped over the drain stane dykes that surround the fields and the wild apples that you see everywhere in Galloway. We fermented those into the mix with wheat, which gives a lovely, elegant smooth vodka.”
Galloway distillery has plans for expansion and makes the award-winning Hills and Harbour gin, 24seven vodka, and a burnt orange and smoked pineapple bottled gin cocktail, as well as the Sassenach gin and vodka.
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