Customer Spotlight: Isle of Raasay Distillery
The Isle of Raasay Distillery had an outstanding last year and 2026 is forecasted to look much the same. Raasay are a much valued & appreciated customer of ours and we had the honour of working with them on many projects last year but also on an exciting introduction to their core range.
Allison Renfrew, Head of Marketing at Raasay shares her experience, on the work that went behind the year that Raasay achieved the ‘World’s Best Whisky’ at the Spirits Awards in Las Vegas for their Cask Strength and on developing the much loved, Raasay’s Brand Portfolio to include their third core Isle of Raasay Single Malt.
Isle of Raasay Distillery’s latest release to their Core Range: The Chinkapin, at the stage of foil embellishment, running on our Digicon Press.
Q1. What so far for you, has been the most memorable, or most rewarding achievement while working at the Isle of Raasay Distillery?
A) For me personally, it was the introduction of 3 new packaging designs to support our product architecture. First, was our new limited release packaging back in July, more recently was the new single cask packaging and just this month, we introduced a new third core SKU. Seeing our Isle of Raasay portfolio each with its own identity is very rewarding.
As a business, the introduction of our new accommodation offering ‘Na Bothain’ has been an exciting journey, and we can now welcome up to 28 overnight guests at the distillery.
Raasay’s latest release & the Third Core Isle of Raasay Single Malt
The final product: The Label on Raasay’s iconic, ultra unique bottle.
“Our labelling is unlike anything else on in the category and with the new designs introduced this year, we have a very strong presence on the back bar” ~ Allison Renfrew
Q2. Tell us more about Raasay’s iconic Brand; the story behind the look & taste.
A) I joined the team 18 months ago, and the brand and story was a huge reason I moved. It’s a marketeers dream! The island itself is a big part of our brand, even the bottle is made from imprints of real island fossils, so was born from the island’s unique geology.
“ I see Raasay as an island of contrasts—ancient rocks and pioneering spirit, rugged shores and refined craftsmanship. ”
We have a distinctive taste due to our unique distillation process, we are known for our lightly signature style with dark fruits . Ultimately, we want to be accessible and fun, and break the barriers of traditional whisky.
Q3. What about the appearance of the bottle, what makes it so distinctive & why do you think it’s so appealing to consumers?
A) I think you just need to look at the bottle and labels to see how distinctive it is. In a sea of flat glass, our bottle demands to be touched. It feels like holding a piece of the island in your hand.
I think most Raasay bottles end up being used for something else afterwards, as they are too beautiful to throw away, and we love that!
Q4. Tell us about your experience working with Spirit Labels- In what way did we help you to achieve your label design and meet expectations as your label partner of choice for this particular project?
A) For The Chinkapin release I decided to work with Spirit Label from start to finish and I couldn’t have been happier with how it turned out. The process in tweaking the existing label design with new colours and copy, was incredibly efficient. They have helped select finishes and problem solved issues very quickly.
“I really appreciate the fact I can do a press pass for each individual job, and make small changes on the day if needed. It helps us land the product exactly as we want”
The Isle of Raasay Distillery, latest release ‘The Chinkapin’, label coming off our Digicon Press, ready to go onto the Rewinder and through the last step in our quality inspection system.
Q5. Lastly, what does the future look like. Is there anything in particular that you looking forward to most….?
A) I am looking forward to rolling out more Limited Releases and Single Casks with the new packaging that has been developed. It has been great to see the whole range come together. 2027 will be our 10 year anniversary, so I am sure there will be another bespoke label of some sort to mark that milestone– you heard it hear first!
Check out The Chinkapin on Raasay’s website here.
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