The unveiling of a new sculpture has marked the beginning of a greener future for a north-east distillery.
Fettercairn Distillery has planted tens of thousands of oak saplings on the 8,500-acre Fasque Estate, which over time will be used to mature whisky.
The project will establish a new land management vision for the next 200 years, and will continue helping the distillery “embed” itself in the local landscape.
Now Glaswegian sculptor Rob Mulholland has revealed a sculpture to mark the milestone, which has been a decade in the making.
Forest Flow
Mr Mulholland has named his piece Forest Flow, inspired by the growth of the new saplings.
The shimmering piece – made up of 3,200 individual pieces of recycled steel – has been designed to represent life, growth and transformation.
Mr Mulholland said: “I was inspired after seeing the water flowing into the distillery from the nearby well, filling the mash tuns and pouring over the outside of the stills – a constant sense of movement and life as the water is circulated over the stills and then naturally cooled and re-circulated.
“This is the same water that sustains the newly planted Fettercairn forest and nourishes the surrounding landscape, a visceral connection between the land and the distillery.
“I wanted to capture this life-giving flow in my sculpture and convey the close relationship that the whole whisky process has with the natural environment.”
He explained that he imagined the time it took him to make the sculpture as a reflection of the time it takes to distill whisky.
Forest Flow is due to be woven into the visitor experience at the distillery from 2022.
‘It will become iconic’
The Fettercairn Forest project is led by whisky maker Gregg Glass.
In recent years, he has conducted numerous trials with wind-felled and responsibly sourced Scottish oak.
The distillery has already laid down whiskies in different types of Scottish oak cask, the first of which should be available to buy from next year.
Stewart Walker, distillery manager at Fettercairn, thinks Mr Mulholland’s sculpture will become an iconic feature of the distillery as it moves forward in the industry.
He said: “We love the idea that Mr Mulholland’s stunning work will keep watch over the mighty oaks in our sustainable forest 150 -200 years from now.
“We are extremely proud when we look at Mr Mulholland’s artistic endeavours – the sculpture has movement, texture and its shadows and reflections are constantly changing. It feels totally in keeping with its environment and for our whisky making philosophy.
“We are confident it will become iconic on our regional landscape – loved by visitors and the local community alike.”