Gordon Shedden
1 Jun 15
1 MIN READ TIME
From Dream to Dram. Kingsbarns Distillery.
Kingsbarns distillery in the East Neuk of Fife was the brainchild of Douglas Clement. From conception in 2009, it took five years for the idea to be formed into a full operational whisky distillery, though it was no easy journey. A former golf caddie, Doug realised there was no nearby whisky distillery for the course’s visitors to go and see. So, he decided on a derelict farm building for his site, based just a few miles from St Andrews.
1 Jun 15
Fife Ambassadors
Tell us more about the inspiration behind this business idea?
I was inspired to create the Kingsbarns Distillery by the regular comments I was getting from the golfers I was caddying for at the nearby Kingsbarns Golf Links. With no distillery that catered for visitors to in our region, Fife, I saw a clear gap in the market and founded a company with the goal creating the Kingdom of Fife’s first visitor whisky distillery in 2009.
Why did you select the East Neuk of Fife as the location for the new distillery and visitor centre?
The main reason was due to Kingsbarns being the gateway to the East Neuk of Fife, only 7 miles away from St Andrews and next to the world famous Kingsbarns Golf Links. This location therefore was key in terms of attracting future visitors to the distillery while we wait for our whisky to fully mature. Also having lived in the East Neuk of Fife all my life with local farming, on my father’s side, and fishing, on my mother’s side, roots in Anstruther it was only natural that I create the distillery here given my passion and love for the area.
