Interview: Marcus Pickering, co-founder of Edinburgh spirits producer Summerhall Distillery

How a pioneering Scottish firm making gin, whisky, and more is looking to toast further successes.

Spirits entrepreneur Marcus Pickering is, along with Matthew Gammell, the co-founder of Edinburgh’s Summerhall Distillery, best known for Pickering’s Gin based on an original Bombay recipe dating back to 1947. The enterprise launched nearly a decade ago, saying it became the Scottish capital’s first exclusive gin distillery in 150 years, having since been joined by many peers, and part of a UK gin market that has seen total revenue grow to an estimated £548.1 million this year, according to IbisWorld.

Key Pickering’s milestones include being named the official gin of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, launching gin-filled Christmas baubles in 2016, which got a nod from US domestic guru Martha Stewart, and winning awards. The Scottish firm says it has expanded into a multi-spirit production able to make vodka, gin, rum, plus blended and single malt whiskies. Pickering himself, who now leads its trade mission overseas and signed up as a Scottish Ministerial Trade Board member, previously said everything “fitted into place” when he moved into distilling, having had more than 25 jobs beforehand. “Now I look back at everything that went before, it seems like there was also something inevitable about it.”

You in October launched your Crimbo Limbo gin advent calendar (which provides a miniature of the spirit for each of the six days of “Twixtmas”). To what extent was creating regular new festive products inspired by the super-popular Pickering’s Christmas bauble debut in 2016?

'We’re a “full fat” kind of company that doesn't believe in compromise,' says the spirits entrepreneur. Picture: contributed.

Our gin-filled Christmas baubles took off in a way we could’ve never predicted and are very much in a league of their own. But our Pickering’s Gin Crimbo Limbo Calendar was very much inspired by that success. We have developed a gift that can be given on Christmas Day and then provides a fun way to navigate the limbo between Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve. Gin is a very saturated market, so we are constantly looking for ways to be innovative, and this produced the Crimbo Limbo Calendar – something we’ve never seen on the market. I would also like to give an honourable mention to our Brussels Sprout Gin, made with real sprouts!

Are you looking to establish more tie-ups following those with Edinburgh tourist attraction The Real Mary King’s Close, and producing gin for luxury cruise specialist Cunard and British Airways, for example?

We are very open to new partnerships, but we must make sure that we are a right fit for them and they are a right fit for us. If both of our core values align, then we will work with them to enhance both of our brands. We’ve recently announced the new Cunard 4 Queens gin range for Cunard, which will include an inaugural Queen Anne Edition, and marks an expansion to our existing partnership. In the last year we’ve expanded our tours, with the debut of our Speakeasy Experience, which sold out during the Fringe this year. We’ve also partnered with I.J. Mellis Cheesemongers for our Cocktail and Cheese Experience, which we change seasonally.

What are your plans regarding making other spirits (say, vodka or rum) in addition to gin after debuting The Broody Hen Scotch Whisky – and are you considering expanding into alcohol-free products amid major growth in this part of the market?

Pickering says gin is a 'very saturated' market, in response requiring innovation, and this produced the Crimbo Limbo Calendar, which was launched in October. Picture: contributed.

I think we’ll leave the alcohol-free products to the experts. We’re a “full fat” kind of company that doesn't believe in compromise. I don’t think I’ve ever had a non-alcoholic drink that is better than one with. We pride ourselves on making the best flavours we can, and adding alcohol to them. But saying that, I have had some non-alcoholic cocktails that were a close second to the real thing! We have moved into other products and have produced a vodka and a rum, but these are for other clients and that’s another story.

You’ve said the pandemic proved challenging, but also saw the business adapt and innovate – can you give more details on this?

Prior to the pandemic, we focused our efforts on creating gin, and developing Pickering’s Gin as a brand. Covid was a huge turning point for us, as we created hand sanitiser for frontline services across Scotland, and realised that we could innovate beyond just gin. This then led to the creation of The Broody Hen Scotch Whisky; our white-label service, producing other spirits for clients; our “seven steps to sustainability” programme, and so much more! We’ve recently launched the bottling and co-packing arm of the business – Edinburgh Bottlers and Co-Pack. This is something we’ve been offering for nearly ten years, but people just weren’t aware of it. We have a sourcing, bottling division with in-house glass, labelling and packaging design. We are a one-stop shop, from concept to bottles on shelf.

Pickering’s next year reaches its tenth anniversary. You’ve previously discussed the brand’s lo-fi beginnings – what is it like to look at your progress to date, what is your favourite milestone so far, and what are key aims now?

There have been a lot of highs and a lot of lows over the last decade. When you’re in the thick of it, it can be hard to step back and look at everything we’ve achieved. It’s amazing to think that, nearly ten years ago, Pickering’s Gin was only in Edinburgh – and now we’re stocked across Europe, the USA, and Asia. I, of course, can’t forget our newest edition to Summerhall Distillery – The Broody Hen Scotch Whisky – which has been a labour of love, and we're very excited that everyone can now try it. We’ve learnt so much as a small business, and now it’s time to put all that experience and our extensive network into good use, HwEdand continue a good steady growth. We’ve got some big things planned for Summerhall Distillery, but you’ll need to wait and see...