It all begins with an idea. And that idea has to turn into a plan… which in turn becomes plans, plans and more plans…! Especially where the distillery build has been concerned. With the help of Jonathan from NorCad design we’ve navigated our way through the Planning Permission and Building Warrant processes and have come out the other side with approvals and a plan for the 8 Doors Distillery, Visitor Centre and Warehouse.

When we began discussing our plans there were a couple of things that we felt were really important to incorporate in the designs. We’re delighted that we’ve been able to include these:

• Firstly, one of the amazing things about our site is the view - it really is spectacular so we wanted lots of glass in our visitor centre. Our tasting room is elevated within the building to give an unrivalled view across the Pentland Firth. And with a natural slope from our building down to the sea, the windows in our whisky lounge can take advantage of this position - meaning our visitors can relax and enjoy a dram with a view.

• Secondly, a sneaky peak! We wanted our stills to be a big part of the frontage of the building. But rather than another expanse of glass on the distillery side we’ve gone with two tall, slim windows that will give visitors a hint of the magic inside. Will you be tempted to come in and have a closer look?

• Thirdly, the water source. Unlike many other distilleries we don’t have a stream or burn running by the site. But we’d love the water in our whisky to be drawn from the rock formations below our site so we’re installing a borehole to create our own dedicated water supply. Ensuring the purest John O’Groat’s water is used in our production process. Although the borehole can’t be confirmed until we start drilling, the positive site survey and the fact the old John O’Groats well was sited a few metres from our site bodes well. Wish us luck!

• Finally, our coastal location is perfect for maturing whisky, and to make sure we take advantage of that we’ll mature our casks in an on-site warehouse with a nod to traditional dunnage-style storage on an open floor. This location will ensure the damp sea air has the chance to influence the character of our 8 Doors whisky.

The mock-ups on this page give you a hint of what’s to come - make sure you sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with the distillery build as it progresses.