King Charles opens 8 Doors Distillery

Scotland’s northernmost mainland distillery, 8 Doors, was opened yesterday (2 August) by King Charles III during his visit to John O’Groats.

Upon arriving at the distillery, the King toured the visitor centre, distillery, and warehouse, and met with various members of the team.

Kerry Campbell, co-founder of 8 Doors Distillery, said: “We were honoured to welcome the King to 8 Doors Distillery and thoroughly enjoyed sharing our story and what makes our distillery so unique with him, as well as offering him the opportunity to fill a cask in our warehouse.

“Throughout his visit he had the opportunity to meet many of our team, from those working in our distillation team through to our retail and distillery lounge staff, all of whom embody our passion for both the whisky industry and the local area.”

During his visit, the King was given an introduction to the whisky and liqueurs 8 Doors Distillery produces, before unveiling an official welcome plaque.

On visiting the warehouse, His Majesty was invited to fill an American oak, Pedro Ximénez hogshead cask, before sampling the new make spirit, which is said to capture the essence of the profile of the single malt whisky that is produced at 8 Doors Distillery.

The microdistillery was founded by husband-and-wife team, Derek and Kerry Campbell, in 2020.

The distillery’s name is inspired by Jan De Groot, the man John O’Groats takes its name from, and the eight-sided house he built near the shore.

8 Doors Distillery says it is influenced by the ‘unique and dramatic’ landscape of the coastal highland area it is situated in, and its Scotch whisky is the first to be produced in John O’Groats since 1837.

The distillery and visitor centre has been designed to showcase its two copper stills and traditional whisky making process, while ‘making the most’ of the views across the Pentland Firth via large glass windows placed along the front of the building.

The distillery offers two tours for visitors: the Express Tour and the Tasting Tour. The latter allows guests to sample the distillery’s new make spirit, three of its Seven Sons whiskies, and its Five Ways blended liqueur.

To mark the King’s coronation this year, many whisky brands unveiled commemorative bottlings.