Record funding round brings £12m 'vertical distillery' on Edinburgh waterfront one step closer

Plans for a nine-storey “vertical distillery” on Edinburgh’s waterfront have moved a step closer after a funding round was completed in record time.
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Port of Leith Distillery said it had closed its latest funding round for its forthcoming £12 million distillery after reaching its Seedrs crowdfunding target within three hours of the campaign going live to investors.

The funding follows four rounds of private investment involving lifelong friends and co-founders of Muckle Brig, the holding company for Port of Leith Distillery and Lind & Lime Gin - Ian Stirling and Paddy Fletcher.

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Co-founder Fletcher said: “Our purpose built nine-storey distillery looks to produce 400,000 litres of pure alcohol per year from Edinburgh’s historic docks. Leith has played a major role in Scotland’s spirit history and we wanted to bring back Scotch whisky making to Leith with a progressive, urban whisky distillery that pushes the boundaries of distilling, which we call the ‘New Scotch’.

“Whisky investment is often thought to be for the wealthy so it was always important for us to invite all whisky lovers on our journey.

“While we wait for our liquid, we hope the Port of Leith Distillery will become another landmark visitor attraction for Edinburgh on its completion in early 2023 with our bar area on the top floor offering panoramic views of the capital from port to castle.”

Earlier this year, the two Edinburgh-based entrepreneurs rolled up the shutters on Lind & Lime Gin’s new distillery on Coburg Street in Leith. It will expand bottling capacity to upwards of one million bottles a year.

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