Wild Atlantic Distillery — County Tyrone Single Malt Whisky

Wild Atlantic Distillery is an Irish whiskey distillery located near Aghyaran, close to Castlederg, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 2019 and is currently owned and operated by brothers-in-law Brian Ash and Jim Nash. It holds the distinction of being the first distillery to revive legal whiskey production in the Derry and Strabane district in around a century, and it also produces award-winning gin and vodka alongside its whiskey.

History

Wild Atlantic Distillery was established in late 2019 by Brian Ash and Jim Nash, with production getting under way in 2020 on a site near Aghyaran, a few miles from Castlederg in County Tyrone. The location sits inland of the Sperrin and Bluestack mountain ranges, roughly 15 miles from the coastal route known as the Wild Atlantic Way, which inspired the distillery's name. The founders have said the project was also inspired by the Porcupine Bank, an underwater plateau off Ireland's west coast first surveyed by the ship M.V. Porcupine in 1862, a theme reflected in some of the distillery's branding and packaging.

The distillery began by building a reputation with its gin and vodka, winning "Best Northern Irish Contemporary Gin" at the World Gin Awards in 2021, while its whiskey was left to mature. Its first whiskey release, IslandMen, was launched commercially in December 2024, marking what the distillery describes as the first legally distilled whiskey to come out of County Tyrone since the historic Watt's distillery closed in 1921 — a link the brand honours in the name "IslandMen 1921." The distillery has since grown its visitor offering, running distillery tours, a dedicated whiskey tour, and cocktail classes, and has expanded distribution of its spirits into North America.

Quick Facts

• Region: County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
• Founded: 2019
• Owner: Brian Ash and Jim Nash (independent, founder-owned)
• Status: Active

Core Range

Wild Atlantic Distillery's whiskey range centres on IslandMen Blended Irish Whiskey, matured in a combination of bourbon casks and Pedro Ximénez Solera 1918 sherry casks. Alongside its whiskey, the distillery's core spirits range includes Wild Atlantic Irish Gin, made with Atlantic Way botanicals including organic sugar kelp and dillisk (dulse), a Wild Strawberry & Elderflower Irish Gin, and Wild Atlantic Irish Vodka, a small-batch vodka distilled using Amalfi lemons.