Eden Mill-Gordon Ramsay Collaboration: Planning Permission for New Distillery Received

Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay is teaming with St Andrews distillery Eden Mill to launch a new line of gins that will highlight Scotland's diverse landscape and flavours. The gin line, titled Ramsay’s Gin, will feature ingredients such as honeyberries picked in St Andrews and Mara seaweed harvested from the Fife coasts, along with fennel, lavender, lemon verbena, and pink peppercorn.

“It’s exciting to work with a team that shares my passion for experimenting with unique ingredients, and we’re very fortunate that the distillery is a stone’s throw from where these exceptional botanicals can be found,” Ramsay wrote on the Eden Mill website.

Ramsay’s Gin’s launch follows the restaurateur and television star’s last Eden Mill collaboration: A gin range titled “Six Rivers.” A limited amount of the Six Rivers range was released in October 2021 and was a resounding success. Ramsay also owns 35 restaurants, seven of which have Michelin stars, and created a collection of Italian wines in 2021 sold at Tesco.

“The team at Eden Mill have an innovative approach to the art of distilling. It has been a joy to work with them and I really respect their passion for their craft,” Ramsay told The Herald.

“We set out to create a narrative from the area around the distillery, to forage ingredients and develop flavours that told a story and I absolutely believe we have done that.”

Eden Mill has also emphasised the need for sustainability in this new line. The gin’s bottle is said to use 18% less glass than an industry-standard bottle and ingredients are harvested locally and sustainably.

This collaboration comes as Eden Mill received full planning permission and signed a 50-year land lease with the University to build a new distillery and visitor centre in St Andrews. The company hopes the new distillery and a visitor centre, which are scheduled to open in the first half of 2023, will become one of the leading attractions in St Andrews and will provide new jobs in the region. Eden Mill, which was named for the former paper mill site that it sits on, has been housed on the University’s Eden Campus at the mouth of the River Eden for a decade. The new distillery, which also sits on the University’s Eden Campus, is already under construction.

“The regeneration of the former paper mill site and the creation of Eden Campus is a major strategic move for the university which will provide an exceptional working environment for our staff,” said Derek Watson, the University’s Quaestor and Factor.

“It will breathe new life into the local economy of Guardbridge and have a beneficial impact on the town of St Andrews and beyond. We are delighted that Eden Mill is part of that.”

Additionally, the new distillery aims to be one of the world’s first carbon-neutral distilleries. The University’s Eden Campus, which hosts the new distillery, is dedicated to sustainable businesses and research ventures and hosts an award-winning biomass energy centre.

“Its fabulous location at the mouth of the River Eden meets the romantic requirements for single malt scotch whisky, while the strictly sustainable nature of our new distillery and the environmentally innovative surroundings of the campus are perfect for our progressive brand,” said Paul Miller, Eden Mill St Andrews Founder.

Miller added that the distillery will be powered in part by the University’s new solar developments, and Eden Mill and the University are discussing the potential for carbon-capture in production processes, which can be used to produce alternative fuels.

“We are delighted to have Eden Mill develop one of the world’s first carbon-neutral distilleries here at Eden Campus. Their carbon aspirations are well known to us and we will help to advise on carbon savings as best we can. The local community will also benefit indirectly from a hopefully thriving business that will create the potential for employment and attract further tourism to North East Fife,” said Geoff Morris, Director of Eden Campus.

Image: Leon Brocard