Blackwood strikes licensing deal to keep business afloat

The firm that had promised to build Shetland’s first whisky distillery has put the project on hold again owing to funding problems.

Blackwood Distillers, the spirits group behind the initiative, had hoped to fund the £5M project with revenue from Shetland Spirit Company, its upmarket spirits business, which makes gin, vodka and vodka cream liqueur.

However, founder Caroline Whitfield was last week forced to put this part of the business into administration after creditors called in their debts and the firm was unable to secure additional financing. “The fund raise was implemented just before the current turmoil in financial markets and the subsequent credit crunch situation meant that it was much less successful than anticipated,” said Whitfield.

However, it is not the end of the road for Blackwood, which has just signed a licensing deal with Blavod Extreme Drinks to sell and distribute Blackwood’s gin, Blackwood’s vodka and Jago’s Vodka Cream (which are produced by Inver House Distillers near Glasgow), said Whitfield. “This deal will lead, undoubtedly, to a stronger performance from the brands than could have been realised by Blackwood with its limited resources.”

The whisky distillery, which was originally supposed to be up and running by 2004, has been dogged by problems and delays. The original plan to build the distillery at Catfirth, near Lerwick, was shelved in 2006 after Whitfield struck a deal with entrepreneur Frank Strang to build it at a former RAF base at Saxa Vord in Unst, the northernmost island in the Shetlands.

A year later, she was forced to abandon the move after agreement could not be reached with Military Asset Management, the owner of the base, and instead reverted back to the original plan to make whisky at Catfirth. Currently, none of the company’s products are actually produced in Shetland, although some of its ingredients are sourced from there. However, Whitfield insists she is still committed to the islands long-term. She added: “We are dedicated to ensure that the business we started in Shetland will flourish long-term.”

Blackwood’s ultra-premium product ranges includes Diva Vodka, which is sold in a bottle containing Swarovski crystals; Jago’s Vodka Cream, a vodka-based cream liqueur, and the prize-winning Blackwood’s Nordic Dry Gin, which uses botanical ingredients from Shetland including wild water mint, sea pink, angelica and juniper berries.