Bonnington

Bonnington refers to the whisky distilled at the Bonnington Distillery. Located in Leith, Edinburgh, once one of Scotland’s busiest whisky and spirits trading ports, the Bonnington site represents both a revival of Leith’s distilling heritage and a forward-looking approach to single malt production.

The distillery opened in 2019, making it one of the newest additions to Scotland’s whisky map, yet it draws on a rich historical backdrop. Leith was a hub for whisky blending, maturation, and export in the 19th and early 20th centuries, home to countless bonded warehouses and merchant bottlers. The name “Bonnington” itself is tied to the local area, reinforcing the distillery’s roots in its Edinburgh surroundings.

Bonnington Distillery is designed as a compact, efficient operation. Its copper pot stills, made by Forsyths of Rothes, are relatively small, giving the spirit more copper contact and promoting a lighter, fruit-forward style. The production team has flexibility in fermentation length and cask selection, allowing them to experiment with different flavour profiles from batch to batch.

One of Bonnington’s defining features is its focus on cask diversity. The warehouse stocks a wide range of wood types, from traditional American oak ex-bourbon barrels to rich oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry butts, as well as experimental casks such as rum, Madeira, and Rioja. This ensures that when the distillery’s own whisky is ready for release, it will have a variety of styles and influences to offer.

Sustainability has also been considered in the design of the site, with energy-efficient equipment and responsible sourcing practices. The visitor experience is central to the distillery’s ethos, with a viewing gallery overlooking the production floor, interactive displays on Leith’s whisky history, and a tasting bar featuring both current Crabbie’s bottlings and previews of maturing Bonnington spirit.

In flavour terms, early indications from the maturing spirit suggest a light, fruity, and accessible style, think orchard fruits, citrus, vanilla, and gentle spice, with scope for deeper, richer expressions from sherry and wine cask maturation.

Our Bonnington selection currently includes Crabbie’s whiskies crafted and bottled by the Leith Distillery Company, offering a taste of the style and ambition that will define the Bonnington name once its own single malt reaches maturity. For whisky lovers, this is a rare opportunity to follow a distillery’s journey from its first years, with the promise of distinctive, Leith-born single malt whisky on the horizon.