Wolfburn

Wolfburn is a relatively new distillery by Scottish standards. It was established in 2013 in the town of Thurso, making it the most northerly distillery on the Scottish mainland.

The distillery is a short walk from the ruins of an earlier distillery that carried the same name.

The first Wolfburn single malt Scotch whisky was released in 2016. 

Wolfburn produces a light, fruity and sweet Highland single malt with a slightly maritime character.

A small portion of the spirit is made using lightly peated barley for a subtle smoky flavour.

The distillery consists of four buildings. The distillery itself and three warehouses. The pot stills and other equipment were supplied by Forsyths of Rothes, the most respected manufacturer in the business.

The day-to-day running of the distillery is overseen by manager Iain Kerr. With time spent at Balmenach, Allt-a-Bhainne and Glenlivet in Speyside, Kerr has almost two decades of experience under his belt. 

Around 80% of the malt used in production is unpeated. Since 2014, however, a small amount of lightly peated spirit has been produced. The malt is peated to around 10 phenol parts per million.

The mash produces a clear wort. This, coupled with long fermentation, helps to produce a light, fruity wash.

Slow, patient distillation takes place in a single pair of stills. The spirit stills are fitted with a boil ball to encourage reflux.

Spirit matures on-site in a combination of different casks. American oak quarter casks seasoned with bourbon whiskey feature alongside hogsheads, barrels and ex-sherry butts. The first official bottling was matured in ex-Islay whisky casks.

The brand’s logo is based on a drawing by 16th-century zoologist, Conrad Gessner. It originally appeared in his book, The History of Four-Footed Beasts and Serpents. In those days wolves were still commonly found in the far north of Scotland.

A man named William Smith established a distillery on the outskirts of Thurso in 1821. He named it Wolfburn after the stream that provided his water.

The distillery remained in his family until the 1850s. By then production had ceased, although exactly when and for what reason, is unclear.

All that is left of the old distillery today is a pile of foundation stones. A short distance away, however, there is a new distillery that carries the Wolfburn name. 

Aurora Brewing Ltd was granted planning permission for their new distillery in 2011. Construction began in 2012 and by January of the following year, the spirit was flowing from the new copper stills.

The first single malt was bottled in February 2016. Today, the core range consists of Northland, Aurora, Morven and more recently, Langskip.

Wolfburn has also bottled the odd special cask as part of the Kylver Series. The series was named after a burial stone found in the surrounding countryside. The stone shows some of the earliest examples of the Viking runic alphabet. The 8^th Kylver bottling was released in April 2021. 

A further limited release was launched in 2021, to mark the 200^th anniversary of the original Wolfburn distillery.