In 2018, with the opening of the Borders Distillery in Hawick, our region finally rejoined Scotland’s most lucrative food and drink sector.

Today’s whisky industry looks very different to the more locally oriented businesses once found in Kelso and around the Borders almost 200 years ago. Whisky now makes billions for the country and is our biggest export after North sea oil. It markets itself as being deeply rooted in tradition, and millions of tourists flock to distilleries every year hoping to taste authentic Scotland in a glass.

With another distillery due to open near Jedburgh, and some predicting several more for the Borders in the next decade, I wonder how our whiskies will fit into this vast and well established industry.

I speak with John Fordyce of the Borders Distillery, about whether they will try to fit in, or forge their own style. We also discuss why the Borders, despite not having an unbroken whisky distilling tradition, is actually ideally suited for making a good dram.

Look out for some more whisky related discussions soon, as I delve into the world of barley with Simpson’s Malt, and speak with whisky expert Annabel Meikle.

In this episode:

* The Borders Distillery - thebordersdistillery.com

* Simpson’s Malt - www.simpsonsmalt.co.uk

* Famously Hawick - www.famouslyhawick.co.uk

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The FoodScape Podcast explores how food shapes the lives and land of the Scottish Borders. It also asks the question; what more could food do for us?

From boosting local economy and creating jobs, supporting biodiversity and improving soil, to establishing a place as a destination; what would it look like for our place to thrive, and can food help us get there?

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Produced & Presented by Charlotte Maberly

Music by Iain Fraser from his album Koterana