Raasay Distillery appoints US distributor

Island-based Scotch whisky maker Raasay Distillery has teamed up with distributor Vision Wine & Spirits to enter the US market.

Raasay Distillery began producing whisky in September 2017

Vision Wine & Spirits will distribute Raasay Distillery’s While We Wait expressions in the US and will eventually also look after the distillery’s single malt bottlings, which will come of age in 2020.

Raasay began producing whisky in September 2017 and is owned by independent Scottish whisky company R&B Distillers.

Following a successful barley variety trial on the island in 2017, Raasay Distillery has the ultimate long-term objective of growing sufficient barley on Raasay to produce at least one batch per year of single malt made with 100% Raasay barley, local water and peat from the northern part of the island.

Co-founder Alasdair Day said: “It is the location; an island off an island with complex geology, water and island climate with probably the best views from any distillery in Scotland that makes Raasay ideal for our innovative Scotch whisky distillery.”

Last year, the Island distillery released the latest whisky in its While We Wait series, which is said to have a “smokiness on first nosing, mixed with red berries, lemon, lime and grassy notes”.

Vision Wine & Spirits is a division of the Martignetti Companies, which is the sixth largest distributor in the US.