Having recently launched her flagship whisky, Nc’nean Organic Single Malt, into the Japanese market, and as she anticipates breaking into Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore later this year, Annabel Thomas, CEO and Founder of Nc’nean Distillery, reflects on women leading the way by pioneering sustainability in a male-dominated industry.
WOMEN IN WHISKY
Nc’nean Distillery (Nc’nean) is a female-led, independent, and fully organic distillery based on the west coast of Scotland with a growing global presence, particularly in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.
We exist to pioneer sustainable production while making light, fruity, and delicious whisky.
I had a dream of building a unique distillery in one of the old buildings on my parents’ farm in Drimnin on the Morvern Peninsula in Western Scotland.
From the beginning, my vision was clear – to challenge the norms of whisky making while minimising environmental impact.
It took four years of hard work, fundraising, and physical building to create our distillery in the Highlands, and another three years for the barrels to mature until we produced our first bottle.
After touring lots of incredible distilleries, I realised that, while there is a strong heritage in whisky making, the industry was still very traditional, and no one was talking about sustainability or thinking creatively about the spirit.
I felt there was scope to create a modern whisky, one that looked forward to the 21st century. I also recognised there would be increasing demand from consumers for sustainable products, which is certainly now the case.
This drive for innovation led to the birth of Nc’nean (pronounced Nc-nee-an), named after Neachneohain, an ancient Gaelic legend known as the Queen of Spirits, a protector of nature and a trailblazer in her own right.
This choice symbolised our commitment to environmental stewardship and determination to forge our own path, breaking with convention. Our ethos is ‘made by nature, not by rules’, which pretty much sums us up.
SETTING OUT SUSTAINABILITY
So, what does sustainability mean in the context of distilling?
I wanted it to be as all-encompassing as possible, so the distillery was designed to produce whisky with one of the lowest carbon footprints possible while protecting biodiversity, soil health, and water, as well as minimising waste.
When designing the distillery, I wanted to make sure the big elements of carbon, raw materials, water, and waste were as sustainable as possible.
To minimise our carbon footprint, I set the distillery up to operate on renewable energy from the beginning; the distillery is verified as net zero for Scopes 1 and 2.
Our distillery is powered by a biomass boiler, with the timber used to power it growing just two miles away.
We didn’t stop there – we are constantly looking for new ways to improve, whether it’s insulating our stills or switching to biodiesel in our tractors.
CONTINUED INNOVATION
For raw materials, I chose to use 100 percent organic Scottish barley to create our whisky and, remarkably, we are the only distillery in Scotland to do so.
It’s important to us that we protect biodiversity and soil health on the farms where we source our barley from, and organic farming avoids the use of artificial fertilisers and chemicals.
We also choose to keep bees at the distillery, encouraging biodiversity while making delicious honey in the process.
Distilling uses a lot of water, primarily for cooling the stills, which accounts for 90 percent of a distillery’s needs.
Instead of using a river or a cooling tower, I decided to dig a cooling pond where warm water goes in one end and cool water out the other – a completely natural solution and highly unusual for a Scotch distillery.
Finally, for the least glamorous element, waste, I chose a very traditional solution. As we are on a farm, the local cows eat our leftover barley, and the waste liquid is spread on the fields.
PROGRESSIVE PACKAGING
It wasn’t long until we also needed to tackle the question of packaging ahead of our whisky launch in 2020.
The key here was to choose a 100 percent recycled glass bottle, a first in Scotch, with a 40 percent lower carbon footprint than a comparable flint glass bottle.
But we didn’t stop there. Every element of our packaging is considered very carefully – our natural cork and wood stoppers absorb carbon in their production and our tamper seals are made from plant-based materials.
Even our gift boxes are 90 percent recycled and made in the UK. We also offer bottle refills if you visit the distillery in person.
“Every element of our packaging is considered very carefully – our natural cork and wood stoppers absorb carbon in their production and our tamper seals are made from plant-based materials”
Annabel Thomas, CEO and Founder, Nc’nean Distillery
A GROWING GLOBAL PRESENCE
Beyond our green initiatives, we’re proud that Nc’nean’s whisky is acclaimed for its outstanding quality.
We work hard to create a delicious spirit by using different yeasts, longer mashing and fermentation times, and high-quality casks to create beautiful flavours in our whisky.
This seems to have paid off as our Organic Single Malt Scotch has won multiple flavour awards, boasting smooth and elegant notes of citrus, peach, apricot, and spice.
We’re very proud to have received prestigious recognitions from the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC), including IWSC Gold for our flagship Organic Single Malt Whisky in 2023.
Furthermore, we have recently launched our flagship whisky, Nc’nean Organic Single Malt, into the Japanese market with our friends and partners at Scythe Co., Ltd. (Scythe) from Tokyo, Japan.
Our product was showcased at the Tokyo International BarShow to thousands of guests with extremely positive feedback for the brand.
As a top 10 single malt whisky market, Japan has been a real focus for us as we look to grow further internationally.
To celebrate our launch with Scythe, we bottled an exclusive Nc’nean single cask for the APAC market – Aon 17-115, a delicious shaved, toasted, and re-charred (STR) red wine cask, filled in May 2017 and bottled at 59 percent alcohol by volume (abv).
This partnership is our first step into the APAC market, and one that represents 32 percent of all Scotch whisky exports by value.
Next will be Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore, launching towards the end of 2024. With more still to come, watch this space.
WOMEN’S ROLE IN WHISKY
Something that I never considered before our launch, but I am now often asked, is what it’s like to be a female in such a male-dominated industry and whether “you even like whisky?”
I am working hard to try to shift the perception that it is only men who both work in and drink whisky. It’s not all about leather armchairs and cigars – we want to make whisky accessible to a wider audience.
I encourage women not to be discouraged from entering male-dominated fields, emphasising the power of bringing something new to the table.
Being a woman in such an industry can be a real benefit – you’ll find that your perspective is invaluable for innovation, which is crucial for carving out your niche.
Efforts are already underway to promote women’s participation in the whisky industry, and I hope similar initiatives are present in other sectors.
