Dornoch Distillery: The Thompson Brothers’ Cult Micro-Distillery

Overview

Dornoch Distillery is one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland and one of the most talked-about. It occupies a Victorian fire station about 10 metres by 4 metres, in the grounds of the Dornoch Castle Hotel. It is run by brothers Simon and Phil Thompson, whose family owns the hotel and its famous whisky bar. They set out to make whisky the old way: slow, hands-on, and using methods from before the industrial era. Their whisky and their independent “Thompson Bros” bottlings have a cult following among enthusiasts.

Where it is

The distillery is in the centre of Dornoch, the old cathedral town of Sutherland, on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth. Inverness is about 45 miles south, around 1 hour by the A9 over the Dornoch Bridge, and Tain is about 8 miles away across the bridge. The fire station sits behind the castle hotel, opposite the cathedral, in the middle of one of the prettiest small towns in the Highlands.

The full history

A whisky bar family

The Thompson family bought Dornoch Castle, the 16th-century former palace of the Bishops of Caithness, in 2000 and ran it as a hotel. Simon and Phil built its bar into one of the best-known whisky bars in Scotland, specialising in old bottlings. Tasting whiskies distilled decades ago convinced them that older methods, such as different barley, slow fermentation and direct-fired stills, gave flavours modern distilleries had lost. In 2013 they began bottling independently as the Black Isle Whisky Company.

The fire station, 2015–2017

The town’s old fire station, built in the 1880s, once housed Dornoch’s volunteer fire crew. It stood empty in the hotel grounds. After winning planning permission in 2015, the brothers funded the distillery partly by crowdfunding: early backers bought casks and first bottles. They also sold their own flat to raise money. Test runs began in late 2016, and the first cask was filled in February 2017.

Thompson Bros

Alongside their own spirit, the brothers became respected independent bottlers under the Thompson Bros label, of Scotch, rum and other spirits. They also make gin. Dornoch’s own single malts are released in very small batches and sell out quickly.

How it’s made

Inside the fire station are direct gas-fired pot stills, a pot-column still and a smaller one for experiments, wooden washbacks and a small semi-lauter mash tun. Everything is run by hand. The brothers favour heritage barley, long fermentations and methods closer to the distilleries of the 1940s–60s than modern practice. The aim is a heavier, more characterful spirit.

Clans, saints & bishops

• Dornoch Cathedral was founded in the 1220s by Gilbert de Moravia, Bishop of Caithness, of the family that became Clan Murray. It was burned in a clan feud in 1570 and restored in the 19th century, and it stands opposite the distillery.
• Clan Sutherland: the Earls of Sutherland ruled the county from Dunrobin Castle, 12 miles north near Golspie.
• Clan Mackay of Strathnaver were the Sutherlands’ great rivals. The 1570 burning of the cathedral came during a feud involving the Murrays, the Mackays and the Sinclairs.
• Clan Ross held Easter Ross across the firth.

Stones, lochs & the coast

• The Witch’s Stone marks where Janet Horne was burned in 1727, the last person executed for witchcraft in Britain.
• Loch Fleet, 4 miles north: a tidal basin and national nature reserve with seals, ospreys and the ruins of Skelbo Castle. See our lochs guide.
• Dornoch beach and Royal Dornoch golf links, among the oldest and finest in the world.
• The Pictish stones of the Tarbat peninsula, including Hilton of Cadboll, are 20 minutes away across the bridge. See our standing stones guide.

Visiting

There is no formal visitor centre, and the distillery is a working space in a tiny building. The best way to experience it is the Dornoch Castle Hotel whisky bar, where you can try the Thompsons’ spirit and a huge range of old and rare bottlings. Check their website for any special events.

Nearby distilleries

• Glenmorangie, Tain (about 8 miles): tall stills, tours.
• Balblair, Edderton (about 12 miles).
• Toulvaddie, Fearn (about 15 miles).
• Clynelish and Brora, Brora (about 17 miles).

The Far North Whisky Trail links them, and the whisky hub covers every region.

Sources

• Dornoch distillery — Wikipedia.
• Scotchwhisky.com: Dornoch Distillery Company.
• The Scotsman: Dornoch fire station to become Scotland’s smallest distillery.