New whisky launched by tourism chief

Unst based spirit producers Shetland Distillery Company are continuing to expand their line of products with the addition of a new whisky.

Shetland Reel Blended Malt Scotch Whisky is the second whisky to be produced by the local distillery and was launched on Monday by VisitScotland chief executive Malcolm Roughead during a visit to Shetland.

The whisky is bottled using a blend of four Speyside and one Islay cask strength single malts, with the finishing touches provided by locally sourced Unst water.

Mr Roughead said: “I am delighted to be in Shetland today, launching this new blended malt whisky. The whisky sector generates £3.3 billion directly to the UK economy and 1.1 million visits were recorded to distilleries in Scotland during 2013, so it is a vitally important part of our tourism offering.

“In Scotland’s Year of Food and Drink, it is great to see businesses like The Shetland Distillery Company expanding their offering which, in turn, can attract more visitors to the area.

“Tourism in Shetland has a ripple effect that touches every industry, business and community throughout the islands.”

Stuart Nickerson, director of The Shetland Distillery Company, said: “This blended malt whisky follows on from the success of our Shetland Reel Single Malt Scotch Whisky, all 172 bottles of which sold out pre-launch.

“Our ‘Bottled in Shetland’ Scotch whiskies are precursors to us installing our own whisky still and distilling Unst whisky.

“The blend is a limited edition, with 1,800 bottles available, priced at £45. As with the single malt, we anticipate a great deal of interest.”