Dunfermline whisky group's new era for the drink in the city

Dunfermline Whisky was created by four whisky enthusiasts: Jason Julien, George Brailey, Brendan Innes, and Adam Stanley. The four men all came together through their own whisky journeys, and will now be running tasting sessions in the city, and sharing their knowledge of the drink.

Jason has written extensively on whisky for publications such as Malt and Dramface. Brendan has been a member of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society since he moved to Scotland in 1996. George’s main whisky influence was his grandfather, and Adam is keen to add to his knowledge of the drink close to his home.

The group will host regular tastings. (Image: Dunfermline Whisky)

George, who has been collecting whisky for about ten years, explained: “I always want to make sure that whisky is inclusive.”

They've started off as a non-profit group, which aims to create an inclusive atmosphere at all of their events. They want to make whisky accessible, and also promote local businesses at the same time. The plan is to have tastings every second Thursday.

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The group’s inaugural tasting, which is taking place at Edward’s Bar and Grill on Hospital Hill on Thursday, April 11, is already booked out. The group will be tasting a selection of bottles, including one from the lost North Port distillery.

“Our first event sold out within a day," said George. “It’s amazing to see such a diverse array of people already.”

While there aren’t any whisky distilleries in Dunfermline currently, there have been several in the past. The group conducted some extensive research and they found out some interesting information about three whisky distilleries that have been in Dunfermline over the years.

One of these distilleries was located in the East Port area of the city, but little is recorded about it.

However, in 1761, the Dunfermline Press' now sister paper, the Alloa Advertiser, reported the discovery of an illicit whisky distillery in Knabbie Street, which is now Carnegie Street. A working still was found in the cellar of a Mr John Hamilton, which was being watched over by his brother, Mr William Hamilton.

The Alloa Advertiser stated: “The still, having been confiscated to the excise, was in a very short period cleared out, and the brothers Hamilton being brought before Mr George Birrell, J.P., Mr John Hamilton was fined £30 for having an illicit still on his premises.

“William Hamilton stated that the still was all his own, the cellar being simply rented from his brother at 1s 6d per week, was sent to prison.”

The first record of whisky distilling in Scotland is a royal record of 1494 according to Dig It Scotland. However, after whisky began to be taxed in 1644, illicit stills began to crop up across the country.

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Dunfermline wasn’t the only place to have an illicit distillery. Preston Island, near Valleyfield and Culross, housed an illegal distillery at one point, although the area is now part of the Torry Bay Local Nature Reserve.

The group’s research also found that Dunfermline’s final distillery was known as either Dunfermline Distillery, or Saint Margaret’s Distillery, and was founded in 1782. It was situated on St Margaret’s Street, which was previously known as Distillery Brae.

More recently, Bell’s Whisky Bottling Plant was based in Dunfermline, although this closed down in the 1990s. To commemorate the closure of the plant, which had been in operation since 1975, Bell’s gifted staff a limited-edition Bell's Extra Special bottle.

Speaking of distilling in history, George commented: “Ultimately it’s been there a while, they have been distilling since the Egyptians.

“It’s fascinating, honestly, the history of whisky and where we can kind of piece it to is tremendous to be honest. It’s quite crazy what information we can find.”

To keep up to date with Dunfermline Whisky’s activities, you can follow the group online, on Facebook at Dunfermline Whisky, and on Instagram at dunfermline.whisky .