A new whiskey distillery and visitor centre in Titanic Quarter is nearing completion, Titanic Distillers has announced.

The £7.6m project includes the conversion of the Titanic Pump-House into a working distillery and tourist attraction, both of which are due to open later this year.

A listed building in the heart of Belfast’s Titanic Quarter, the Pump-House and neighbouring Thompson Dry Dock first opened in 1911 to service and accommodate the White Star transatlantic liners, Olympic and Titanic.

The redevelopment sees the installation of three large stills on a mezzanine floor overlooking the original pumping engines which are situated in the pump-well. 

All of the original pump equipment and associated internal historic features of the building have been retained. Apart from restoration requirements, the exterior of the pump house has been  largely untouched.

In Association with

Richard Irwin, director of Titanic Distillers, said: “There is a significant global market opportunity for Irish Whiskey and we’re already seeing great success for our Titanic Distillers premium Irish Whiskey in retailers throughout Britain.

“With significant investment in a dedicated distillery, we’ll soon be able to produce and bottle our own products on this historic site and build on our success to date to grow in global markets, with an initial focus on the US.”

Once completed, visitors to the Pump-House will ‘clock in’, as workers did a century ago, to view the workings of the distillery and hear the story of Belfast’s whiskey tradition, why it disappeared and how it has returned with the city’s first working whiskey distillery since the 1930s.

Invest Northern Ireland has provided support towards the creation of the 41 jobs and property assistance towards the redevelopment of the Pump-House. Ten jobs are already in place and recruitment is underway with operations, distilling, hospitality and sales opportunities available.

Titanic Distillers has also availed of £2m of funding from Whiterock Finance through the Growth Finance Fund, part of Invest NI’s Access to Finance suite of funds, with finance provided by the British Business Bank, Invest NI and private investors, Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee.

Meanwhile, south of the border, Powerscourt Distillery has introduced its first whiskey distilled on-site at the Powerscourt estate in Co.Wicklow.

The distillery describes Fercullen Falls as a blend of malt and grain whiskeys, with a high malt content matured in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels. The grain whiskey is matured in a combination of ex-bourbon and new heavy char oak casks, and the blend is 50/50.

Head of Whiskey for the distillery, John Cashman, commented: “With this release the Powerscourt Distillery is heralding the start of a new era for the distillery with the inclusion of malt whiskey distilled right here in Powerscourt.

“As a proud Wicklow man, it is wonderful to be part of the first legal whiskey distilled in Wicklow in over a hundred years. The team has worked very hard to develop and deliver Fercullen Falls blended Irish Whiskey."

The whiskey is bottled at 43% ABV, higher than standard for a malt whiskey blend.

“The 50% malt content in the blend adds to the complexity and depth of flavour which is very different to what other blended Irish whiskeys are offering,” said Paul Corbett, head distiller and blender.

Photo (l-r): Titanic Distillers directors Stephen Symington, Peter Lavery, Richard Irwin and Sean Lavery