GlenWyvis
Type: Distillery
Above Dingwall, beneath Ben Wyvis, a wind turbine supplied GlenWyvis with power while founder John McKenzie's cows received the draff left from distilling. Built on a farm, the distillery brought together community investment and an off-grid energy system drawing on wind, water, solar power and biomass.[1][3]
GlenWyvis opened in November 2017 and began whisky production in 2018, returning distilling to the area after about 90 years. On 5 October 2026, GlenWyvis Distillery Limited entered administration; production stopped.[1][2][6][10]
At a glance
| Field | Verified record |
|---|---|
| Location | Upper Dochcarty, Dingwall IV15 9UF, Ross-shire, on Scroggie Farm.[1][3][5] |
| Established | 2015, according to the producer; officially opened on 30 November 2017.[1][5] |
| First production | Whisky and gin production began in 2018.[1][10] |
| Owner and ultimate parent | Not reliably established after administration; checked November 2026.[6] |
| Business status | Entered administration on 5 October 2026, reported by BeverageDaily; checked November 2026.[6] |
| Distilling status | Production stopped, reported on 12 October 2026; checked November 2026.[6] |
| Visitor access | No documented visitor centre; present access arrangements unconfirmed.[8][10] |
| Site status | Completed buildings documented in November 2017 opening accounts; current physical condition not reliably established.[3][5] |
| Water | On-site borehole.[3][5] |
| Installed capacity | Reported as 140,000 litres a year, not actual output; checked November 2026.[3][7] |
| Energy | Producer describes an off-grid system using wind, hydro, solar and a woodchip biomass boiler.[1][3] |
What GlenWyvis is known for
GlenWyvis drew thousands of people into a distillery project on a Highland farm. Its first share offer, launched in April 2016, attracted 2,200 investors within 77 days. A second offer followed in August 2017, intended to support a gin still and a sales team, and brought in about 1,000 more investors.[1][4]
Published accounts give several dated figures: more than 3,000 shareholders at the opening, 3,625 at the end of 2022 and about 4,000 members reported by 2026. These are records from different moments, not interchangeable descriptions of the same membership.[2][6][8]
The energy arrangement was just as distinctive. The producer describes a combination of wind, hydro, solar and biomass. The trade account adds the farm's practical exchange: John McKenzie's wind turbine supplied the distillery, and he received its draff, the grain residue from production, for his cows.[1][3]
Community investment and that close relationship with the farm define GlenWyvis. Its claim to be the first community-owned distillery is less settled.
Verdict: Disputed
Claim: GlenWyvis was the first community-owned distillery.
What the record shows: The producer and BBC call it the world's first; Scotchwhisky.com calls it Scotland's first.[1][2][3]
Evidence gap: These descriptions do not independently establish worldwide precedence.
Earliest known source: Not reliably established from the supplied sheet.
Sources: Producer's account; BBC News, 30 November 2017; trade profile.
Last checked: November 2026; the exact day is not reliably established.
From a farm project to first spirit
Farmer, former army officer and helicopter pilot John McKenzie founded GlenWyvis on his Scroggie Farm. Planning permission came in 2014, and the trade account records the incorporation of GlenWyvis Distillery Ltd in March 2015.[3][4][5][7]
Establishment, construction, opening and first production mark distinct stages of the project, rather than competing birthdays.[1][3][5]
Story box: A new distillery above Dingwall
| Field | Record |
|---|---|
| Founding story | The producer dates establishment to 2015.[1][3][5] |
| Turning point | Construction finished in November 2017, with the official opening on 30 November 2017.[3][5] |
| Documented record | GlenWyvis was a new build, not a reopening of either lost distillery whose names inspired it.[3][4] |
| Claim-source mapping | Founder and farm: trust history. Establishment: producer's account. Construction and new build: trade profile. Opening: trust history. Names: trade company profile. |
| Last checked | November 2026; the exact day is not reliably established. |
David O'Connor was chairman at the opening. Duncan Tait, formerly at Mortlach, joined as distillery manager in November 2017. The inaugural whisky account in 2021 named Matthew Farmer as manager and David Graham as board chairman.[2][4][9]
Production timeline
| Date | Verified milestone |
|---|---|
| January 2017 | Construction began.[3][4] |
| 30 November 2017 | Official opening.[5] |
| 2018 | Whisky and gin production began.[1][10] |
| 2019 | More than 500 casks on site; a new make spirit bottling released.[1] |
| December 2021 | Inaugural single malt reported.[9] |
| 5 October 2026 | Business entered administration; production subsequently reported stopped.[6] |
How the whisky was made
Unpeated malt from Bairds, with barley supplied through Highland Grain, formed the starting point in the trade production account. A full lauter mash tun handled a 0.5-tonne grist. Fermentation then ran for 72 to 96 hours in six stainless-steel washbacks.[3]
The same account describes two distinctive still shapes: a 2,500-litre onion-shaped wash still and a 1,700-litre lamp glass spirit still. Those published specifications describe the vessels, rather than a verified current inventory; the total still count remains unresolved in the supplied record.[3]
Water came from an on-site borehole. The published maturation plan called for first-fill and refill American oak, alongside some sherry casks, in on-site dunnage warehousing. It sets out the intended approach, rather than a complete inventory of the casks eventually filled.[3][5]
The inaugural single malt offers a closer look at what reached the bottle. Its release account identifies the actual casks selected for that batch, giving a precise example alongside the broader production plan.[9]
The inaugural single malt
GlenWyvis's first Highland Single Malt was three years old, bottled at 50% ABV and drawn from 18 casks distilled in 2018. It was whisky from the distillery's first production year.[9]
The selection comprised 15 first-fill ex-Tennessee whiskey casks, two first-fill ex-Moscatel casks and one refill hogshead. The launch account records 3,600 individually numbered bottles allocated to shareholders, connecting those participants with the first release.[9]
Gin followed a different path. GlenWyvis gin launched in 2015, initially made at Saxa Vord on Unst before production moved in house. Its launch came before whisky production at Dingwall, so 2015 marks the gin's beginning, not the site's first distillation.[3][5]
A new name, not an old distillery reopened
Two lost local distilleries supplied the GlenWyvis name: Ben Wyvis in Dingwall and Glenskiach in Evanton. According to the founder's trust, the combined name followed Whyte and Mackay's refusal to permit use of Ben Wyvis.[3][4][5]
GlenWyvis was nevertheless a new distillery, not the old Ben Wyvis reopened. The producer's history also describes a later Ben Wyvis malt operation within the Invergordon grain complex from 1965. Its stills subsequently went to Glengyle in Campbeltown.[1]
The names belong to the area's longer whisky history; GlenWyvis's own construction dates to 2017 and its production to 2018. The naming connection carries neither an uninterrupted production history nor an inherited set of stills.[1][3][4]
Community ownership and the farm
The reported community ownership arrangement did not extend to the land. McKenzie retained it and granted a 175-year lease. Current ownership of the site after administration is not reliably established.[7][8]
The relationship between founder and society later became the subject of a dispute, with differing accounts of what had happened.
Verdict: Disputed
Claim: McKenzie says the project was “hijacked”.
What the record shows: Reporting records that the society obtained court interdicts over the lease and said it largely succeeded in the dispute.[7][8]
Evidence against or gap: The founder's and society's interpretations differ; the supplied sheet does not resolve them.[7][8]
Earliest known source: Not reliably established from the supplied sheet.
Sources: The Spirits Business, 27 August 2026; The Herald.
Last checked: November 2026; the exact day is not reliably established.
Equipment problems and administration
An October 2019 fire was confined to the woodchip store. Equipment problems later interrupted distilling: reporting described production lost during 2025 and early 2026 because of breakdown, with the biomass boiler rebuilt.[7][10]
BeverageDaily reported that GlenWyvis Distillery Limited entered administration on 5 October 2026. Alistair McAlinden and Geoff Jacobs of Interpath were appointed. Production had stopped, and all three staff had been made redundant.[6]
The administrators were seeking to secure the whisky stocks and equipment ahead of a possible sale. The October report did not confirm a completed sale or a restart.[6]
Visiting and further reading
GlenWyvis has no documented visitor centre. Reporting on its 2024 plans said planning objections could not be overcome, so readers should not treat the farm address as an invitation to arrive for a tour.[8][10]
In short
The dates distinguish three different beginnings: the gin launched in 2015, the distillery opened in 2017 and whisky production began in 2018. The GlenWyvis name recalls lost local distilleries, but the farm distillery was a new build.[1][3][4][5][10]
Where to go next
- Glenmorangie: explore another Highland distillery.
- The Dalmore: read another Highland distillery history.
- Balblair: discover a separate distillery history.
Sources
- GlenWyvis Distillery. Our Story. Producer's account, undated. https://glenwyvis.com/our-story/
- BBC News. New whisky distillery near Dingwall 'a world first'. 30 November 2017. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-42165512
- Scotchwhisky.com. GlenWyvis. Trade reference profile, undated. https://scotchwhisky.com/whiskypedia/16993/glenwyvis/
- Scotchwhisky.com. GlenWyvis Distillery Ltd. Trade reference profile, undated. https://scotchwhisky.com/whiskypedia/17046/glenwyvis-distillery-ltd/
- Dingwall Whisky Distillery Trust. History and development of GlenWyvis Distillery. Founder's trust account, undated. https://dwdt.co.uk/history
- BeverageDaily. World's first community-owned distillery enters administration. 12 October 2026. https://www.beveragedaily.com/Article/2026/10/12/community-owned-distillery-glenwyvis-distillery-limited-enters-administration/
- The Spirits Business. GlenWyvis in dire need of funding to save distillery. 27 August 2026. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2026/08/glenwyvis-in-dire-need-of-funding-to-save-distillery/
- The Herald. How things went sour at Scotland's first community-owned distillery. Publication date not supplied in the verified sheet. https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/24244613.glenwyvis-community-whisky-distillery-hijacked-says-founder/
- Inside the Cask. World's first 100% community-owned distillery launches Scotch whisky. 13 December 2021. https://insidethecask.com/2021/12/13/worlds-first-100-community-owned-distillery-launches-scotch-whisky/
- Wikipedia. GlenWyvis distillery. Revision date not supplied in the verified sheet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GlenWyvis_distillery
This desk-researched article uses verified fact sheet TOP-A653, distinguishing the producer's and founder's accounts from trade and news reporting.
Last checked: November 2026