It was my birthday on Good Friday and on Easter Sunday we took in a walk taking in the site of Ad Gefrin in North Northumberland. Ad Gefrin was a royal palace owned by Northumbrian Kings Edwin and Oswald in the 7th Century – one of a number where they would stay and receive tributes etc when touring their kingdom (and not off battling/slaughtering rivals elsewhere in the country). The palace’s name has also been adopted by the new Ad Gefrin distillery and visitor attraction at the nearest town, Wooler, which is a family favourite for camping trips. A tasting tour of the distillery was part of my birthday treats.

The engineer in me loves seeing how things are made, but the unexpected pleasure was the environmental angle. The barley is deliberately purchased from four farms within a 15 mile radius, malted in nearby Berwick (our tasting host later noted that the peat used for this was not very sustainable), water comes from an on site borehole and the spent mash is given away to local farmers as cattle feed. The waste heat from the process is used to heat the museum and bistro on site. One of my co-tourees asked about the carbon dioxide produced in the process, and the guide said there wasn’t enough to be worth capturing it. I suggested using it to grow tomatoes in a greenhouse, but he pointed out there wasn’t enough natural daylight during the winter. For a distillery guide, he really knew his stuff.

I loved Ad Gefrin Distillery and its commitment to small scale local produce and employment, never mind that the environment was demonstrably a key factor in its development. The museum about Anglo Saxon times was excellent according to the rest of the family (I only had time for a quick spin through). Wooler really needed an indoor attraction to serve those less interested in hiking in the Cheviots or on those frequent days when the heavens open. I hope they can make the financials work – whiskey takes at least 3 years to produce so they won’t be selling any until 2026 – in the meantime sales are limited to gin and a whiskey blended from malts from elsewhere, plus the museum entry, tours and the bistro. I raise my glass to them and wish them all the best!