Bruichladdich X Oak & Awl

At the tail end of last winter, my wife and I took a tour around Scotland and the lower Hebrides with her cousin Yanick and his wife Michele. If you have never visited this part of the world, do yourself a favour and go now. You can read more about our trip here.

While on the stunning island of Islay touring around the many scotch distilleries they have to offer, one particular visitor centre stood out above all the rest. Bruichladdich is a relatively new name in the whiskey business, having taken over a formerly closed distillery which originated in 1881. Their refreshing and progressive take on the production of single malt scotch is catching attention all over the world, and while they are excellent at whiskey, they are also turning their hands to the world of gin, with the frankly unbelievably good 'The Botanist' spirit.

While speaking with the fine folks about their wares, I soon got chatting about design and their retail space with Ailsa Hayes, the companies retail manager.

Along with Bruichladdich, Oak & Awl went on to produce a special line of tablet stands for use in the visitor centre at the distillery, with the companies logo subtly branded into the base of each stand. Using the same local oak from a storm-fallen tree which I have dried and milled myself, the finished stand was much larger than my standard design, but it fits perfectly with the overall feel of the visitor centre and amazing surroundings of the distillery.

It is a privilege to work with the great people at Bruichladdich, and to have my handmade pieces as the centre point of their retail point of sale. So next time you go for a dram, say hi from me. Sláinte!