A Continued Commitment to Excellence at Orkney Spirits Limited
- 2 days ago
- 4 min read
At Orkney Spirits Limited, excellence isn’t a reaction to circumstances - it’s how we’ve always worked. As a small, independent, family-run distillery, our focus since day one has been simple: to make truly exceptional spirits, with care, integrity, and attention to detail at every stage. From our ingredients to our processes, and from safety to flavour, we believe that doing things properly is non-negotiable.
We’re proud to be part of Orkney’s diverse and growing food and drink landscape, and we’re equally proud of the standards we uphold as an individual business within it.
Photo 1: Highland Park Distillery (Orkney.com), 2: Becca, Orkney Gin Company, 3: Lewis, Swannay Brewery (Orkney.com)
Did you know...
Orkney is home to six separate distilleries and two breweries, all operating independently, on different islands or in different parishes, and under different ownership. Orkney Spirits Limited is its own family-run business, with its own facilities, people, and systems. While we share a name with the place we love, our distillery, products, and processes are entirely our own.
Safety, Transparency, and Doing Things Properly
Behind every bottle is a great deal of work that never makes it onto a label. We take safety and compliance extremely seriously and maintain an open, proactive relationship with all areas surrounding.
This includes lots of important processes which we really do take to the next level:
Ongoing correspondence and transparent communication, updating Environmental Health on new products and developments.
Welcoming questions and scrutiny from the public, trade, and from safety and compliance officers - maintaining detailed and regularly reviewed HACCP (food safety) documentation and more.
Successfully passing PASS on all visits and correspondence. We are also actively working towards SALSA accreditation, a higher recognised food safety standard. We’re proud that Environmental Health officers have described some of our procedures as among the most detailed they have seen — a reflection of the care we take as a small team where nothing is left to chance.
Creating award-winning spirits consistently, judged on Quality Alone. Our spirits are judged where it matters most: blind, by experts, and purely on quality. We are honoured to be among the most highly awarded spirits producers in the UK, with recognition including:
World’s Best Akvavit – World Drinks Awards (2× winner)
Great Taste Awards – Three Stars (2×), awarded to only around 2% of products ever entered
Best Gin in the UK – World Gin Awards Multiple Gold Awards from Great British Food Awards, including Best Vodka and Best Flavoured Gin
Top accolades at the Gin Masters and Spirits Masters Awards
Platinum Awards at the Scottish Retail Food & Drink Awards
All of these awards are blind judged, meaning our spirits are assessed solely on flavour, balance, and craftsmanship.
Closer to home, we’re also incredibly proud to have been awarded Best Drink Product at the Orkney Food & Drink Awards every time since 2018 — a public-judged award that means a great deal to us as a family business rooted in our local community.
Image 1: Winner since 2018, Image 2: Winners of the bi-annual Orkney Food and Drink Awards 2024 (Orkney.com)
You can vote for us in this year's awards
Using only the highest quality and only all-Natural Ingredients, No Compromise. We believe great spirits start with great ingredients, without shortcuts. For us, “all-natural” isn’t a slogan; it’s reflected in how we work every day.
Our base spirit is distilled eight times for exceptional purity. Most spirits are only distilled around three times. We use whole fruits and botanicals, carefully prepared by hand. Whole Madagascan vanilla pods, not flavourings. Seville oranges, selected for their depth and character. Home-grown mint. Hand-squeezed and zested lemons. Every decision is guided by flavour, balance, and quality. It’s not about saving money or speeding things up - it’s about making spirits we’re genuinely proud of, and delighted to put our family name behind.
Then, of course, there's all the wonderful feedback we receive!
What Our Customers Say
We recently introduced verified customer reviews on our website, and we’ve been genuinely humbled by the response. In a short space of time, we’ve already received over 100 verified five-star reviews, with none below five stars. Combined with feedback from tastings, stockists, events, and conversations over the years, this represents thousands of happy customers enjoying our spirits.
Chris - Verified Purchase *****
"The best gin
The best gin ever made. So delicious. Once you try this no gin will ever compare. Always a staple at holidays / gatherings!"
Kay - Verified Purchase *****
"My new favourite gin
Well what can l say? Orkney Gin Company have done it again . As soon as l opened the parcel and saw the bottle l thought WOW and my opinion did'nt change when l tasted it. I shall be using the bottle when it is empty. Will make another light bottle to add to my collection."
Ruth - Verified Purchase *****
"Unique in essence and quality
Beautifully packaged in quality paper and card based packaging, the package reflected fully the character of the product. Mikkelmas gin is the essence of a fireside Christmas in a bottle. Redolent with warming cinnamon and other sweet spices and when paired with ginger ale, it encapsulates the joy of hygge in liquid form."
Thank You for Supporting Independent Spirits
We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who supports Orkney Spirits Limited - whether you’ve been with us since 2016 or have discovered us more recently. We’ll continue doing what we’ve always done: working closely with regulators, choosing quality over shortcuts, maintaining excellence, and making really bloody good spirits, the right way. If you ever have questions about our products or processes, our door is always open.
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