Mark Reynier is the founder and CEO of Waterford Distillery and will be here at The Kitchen on Sunday September 11 to host our first Whisky Pairing dinner since January 2020.

Mark grew up in the wine business and in 1996 he established Murray McDavid Independent Bottlers, we still have some of his bottles on the shelves and more in storage. The Murray McDavid team purchased the mothballed Bruichladdich distillery on Islay in 2000.

With Mark’s background in wine he learned much about terroir and the science behind wine making. He believed that terroir wasn’t just indicative to grape growing and the wine industry. Whilst at the helm of Bruichladdich he set out to prove that the soil where the barley was grown was as important as the soil for grape production. Bruichladdich still has terrior specific releases. In 2012 Remy Cointreau purchased Bruichladdich and Mark went searching for a new distillery location where he could grow the best barley. When the opportunity to purchase an old Guinness brewery in Southern Ireland presented itself, he jumped at the chance and Waterford was born.

Mark’s goal was to take his decades of expertise and “break the norms” by creating whisky with a focus on terroir. By using new technologies, avoiding shortcuts in the distillation process, and working directly with Irish farmers, Waterford is able to produce purer flavours. With their single farm origin whiskies, you can truly taste the flavours or Ireland in a unique way.

 Get your tickets here!