Fermanagh’s Boatyard Toasts More Irish Retail Success
Fermanagh’s Boatyard Distillery, a FoodNI member, has won business with the SuperValu retail operation that will see its range of gins on sale across the island of Ireland.
The distillery has also seen its gins chosen for premium cocktails at the five-star Merchant Hotel in Belfast. The deal with SuperValu is a major boost for the small distillery which produces unique double gins and vodka and plans to launch the first Irish whiskey produced in Fermanagh in more than a century.
Headed by experienced industry professional Joe McGirr, the ambitious company has converted an old boathouse that overlooks Lough Erne and is close to Enniskillen. In addition to the distillery with its copper stills, the site includes a purpose-built visitor centre which is adding to Fermanagh’s position as a popular tourism destination.
The distillery has a developing export business especially in Great Britain and the US, where it is popular at the famed Dead Rabbit Irish bar in New York City, and is poised for fast growth. SuperValu, part of the Cork-based Musgrave Group, has successful supermarkets throughout the island.
Boatyard is the only distillery in Ireland to achieve B-Corp status for its outstanding focus on sustainability and the local environment.
