Grown, Malted, and Distilled in Northumberland – The Perfect Provenance for Northumberland’s Ad Gefrin Whisky Distillery

Ad Gefrin is delighted to announce that the inaugural barley growers for making its Northumbrian Whisky, will be farms all within 10 miles of the Distillery itself.   The barley will be stored locally, and malted in Berwick Upon Tweed, by Simpsons Malt, before delivery to Wooler. Fully traceable the whole operation is happening within a 20-mile radius of Ad Gefrin!

Northumberland is renowned for producing the very best quality  barley and it is in demand throughout the world.  The type of barley chosen for Ad Gefrin is Diablo, the highest yielding spring barley on the market.  The four farmers selected to grow in the region of 400 tonnes between them for Ad Gefrin, are Tom Jackson, growing at Northfield Farm, Lowick, George Farr of Pallinsburn, David Warcup of Letham Hill Farm, Etal and Cameron Shell of Brandon near Powburn.

Ben Murphy, Head Distiller at Ad Gefrin said, “It is so exciting to be able to produce a malt which will be grown by local farmers, and malted by Simpsons Malt, who are literally just up the road.  The relationship with growers will be collaborative, as the barley is grown and malted specifically for us.”

Barley is not the only ingredient that will be entirely local – perhaps the most important by volume is the water.  This will be drawn from a borehole on site which will deliver its ancient waters from a depth of 200m which has come directly from the nearby Cheviot hills themselves.  Keen to do all they can to  help the environment, energy for the process will also be sourced locally, with electricity generated from Ad Gefrin’s extensive rooftop solar panels.

Ben concludes: “A whisky is of course not just about the barley; the barley is just one of many factors.  There is the water, and the years required for maturing, the wood chosen for the casks, and of course the careful handling by the stills’ team.   Ad Gefrin will be a Northumbrian Whisky, through and through, grown, distilled and nurtured in the shadow of the Cheviot Hills.”

The relationship with Simpsons Malt is also vital to Ad Gefrin, as the fifth-generation, family business has the infrastructure in place – through its position as both a malting and agricultural merchanting company – to connect the grower to distiller, showcasing supply chain traceability from seed to spirit. It has formed this partnership for supplies to Wooler’s new distillery that helps guarantee their local provenance and quality throughout the world.

“It is really exciting to be part of such a major milestone for Wooler and north Northumberland.” enthused grower Tom Jackson, “Normally our malting barley goes to Scotland, so we are pleased and proud to be part of this new enterprise to produce a genuinely local product.”

Tim McCreath, Simpsons Malt Managing Director, added: “It has been fantastic to work so closely with Ben as the exciting developments at Ad Gefrin have progressed over the past 12 months.

“The distillery’s high-quality Northumbrian spring barley has been sown at farms less than 10 miles from the site and we’re now counting down the days until harvest. From there, we will collect and store the barley before transporting it to our Tweed Valley Maltings for malting and subsequent delivery, passing a couple of the farms during the 17-mile journey.”

Ad Gefrin will be the first ever commercial whisky distillery in Northumberland and will be opening its doors to the public in the Autumn of this year.  As well as creating the first Northumbrian Single Malt Whisky, and in the region of 50 jobs, this £10.4m development will include a world class cultural visitor experience celebrating Northumbria’s Golden Age.

Ad Gefrin opens in Autumn 2022.

Ad Gefrin Single Malt Whisky will mature from 2025 onwards.

For more information visit adgefrin.co.uk.

About Ad Gefrin

Ad Gefrin is a £10.4m world-class visitor experience and whisky distillery that will reveal the fascinating history of Northumberland’s Anglo Saxon ‘Golden Age’. Informed by one of the 20^th century’s most remarkable archaeological finds – the internationally renowned archaeological site, Yeavering – the centre will recreate the Great Hall of the royal summer palace of the 7^th century Northumbrian kings and queens. Ad Gefrin is funded by the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal, the North East Rural Growth Network – Strategic Economic Infrastructure Fund (SEIF), North East LEP and Northumberland County Council. 

About Yeavering (the archaeological site of Ad Gefrin) 5 miles from Ad Gefrin Visitor Experience and Distillery

Internationally renowned, Yeavering is the most thoroughly excavated Anglo Saxon palace complex in Europe and the only archaeological site to have evidence of a timber grandstand and gathering place. This was the 7^th Century royal summer residence of early Anglo-Saxon kings and queens including Aethelfrith, Edwin and Aethelburga, the saintly Oswald and his younger brother Oswy.  Discovered in 1949 through aerial photography, and excavated by Brian Hope-Taylor in the 1950’s and 60’s, the scheduled archaeological site is today under the ownership and management of The Gefrin Trust. The Trust  was formed to ensure the future preservation of the site through sympathetic management, conservation and investigation. Ad Gefrin Visitor Experience and Distillery is working in partnership with The Gefrin Trust to further illuminate the importance of the archaeological site within the exhibition at the Visitor Centre.

About Borderlands Partnership

The Borderlands Partnership consists of Carlisle City Council, Cumbria County Council, Dumfries and Galloway Council, Northumberland County Council and Scottish Borders Council. The Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal was agreed between the Borderlands Partnership, the UK Government and the Scottish Government in March 2021. The Deal will deliver up to £350 million investment in projects across the region from the UK and Scottish Governments alongside local investment of £100 million. More information can be found at www.borderlandsgrowth.com

About the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP)

The North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is a public, private, and education sector partnership that covers Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Sunderland local authority areas.

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