Wick Seafarers Memorial Group Receives Support From New Wolfburn Whisky

Willie Watt MBE with a bottle of the memorial Wolfburn release.

To raise much-needed funds for the Seafarers Memorial in Wick, Wolfburn Distillery has unveiled a charity bottling, with proceeds being donated towards the maintenance and upkeep of this historical Wick landmark.

‘The memorial team are overwhelmed by the generosity of the team at Wolfburn, whose financial support will ensure that the monument will be properly maintained and looked after for years to come,’ said Memorial Group Chairman Willie Watt. ‘The fact that we reached so far back in history to commemorate the 1848 Black Saturday tragedy makes the release of this local limited-edition bottle of whisky all the more important, poignant and special. Our community was made strong through the exploits and hard work of these early fishermen and it is fitting to enjoy a fine dram in their memory. We will remember them!’

Crafted from peated spirit matured for over seven years in hand-selected oak barrels, the packaging features imagery from Robert Anderson’s painting, ‘Wick’s Black Saturday’. And the whisky inside the bottle has equally historical connotations, being made in just the same way it was back in the 1840s. ‘As a proud Pulteneytowner I am delighted that Wolfburn has been able to assist the community in this way,’ commented distillery administrator Jennifer Nicolson. ‘It’s been a lovely project to be involved with, and the reaction of the local folk has been just brilliant.’

ABOUT WOLFBURN:

The original Wolfburn Distillery was founded just to the west of Thurso by William Smith in 1821.  In its day it was one of the largest distilleries in Scotland, producing, according to HMRC records, 28,056 “gallons of proof spirit” in a single year.  Taking its name from the stream that provided the water – the Wolf Burn – the distillery operated until around 1870.  The reasons for its closure are lost in time, but by 1877 the newly produced Ordnance Survey maps showed it being in ruins.

In 2011 plans were laid to resurrect the old distillery. Construction began in 2012 and in January 2013 the new Wolfburn Distillery commenced production, thereby becoming the most northerly distillery on the Scottish mainland.  Situated 300m from the site of the original distillery, the new Wolfburn operates in much the same way as the old: craftsmen use traditional methods to produce fine spirit, which is laid down in best quality oak casks to await the day when it is bottled as single malt scotch whisky.  Wolfburn’s single malt scotch whiskies are now available in over 40 countries globally.

Wolfburn Distillery, Henderson Park, Thurso, Caithness KW14 7XW

www.wolfburn.com

www.facebook.com/wolfburn