Husband and wife team James and Moira Doherty founded Sliabh Liag, the first legal distillery in Donegal (an area with a rich history of illegal distilling) for more than 175 years, with the goal to reclaim the region's distilling heritage.
They uprooted their family from Hong Kong to pursue their passion and continue a family tradition. Their brands are inspired by James’s grandfather’s old poteen and whiskey recipes that were given to him by his grandmother. With these recipes in hand, the duo have set about not just building a distillery, but building two distilleries, and more importantly building a community, a business and an industry that can help support that area of Ireland.
James Doherty said: "Both my grandfathers were illicit pointín men. This is in my DNA. It is my legacy and one that I think my grandfathers would be proud of. I want to share this legacy - this opportunity to cement artisan Irish whiskey as the world's best - with those who want to come along with us on this exciting journey through Ireland's long, almost lost distilling heritage."
Moira Doherty added: "The Ardara distillery is the natural next step in our journey to revive the Irish whiskey tradition, to bring it back to the communities while taking the name of Donegal to the furthest reaches we can."
Moira is also the inspiration behind An Dúlamán Gin. A native of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, she has travelled the world with James. As the distiller of An Dúlamán Gin, she was shortlisted for Master Distiller of The Year and Innovator of The Year at the Icons of Gin awards. Moira has strong design ideas that can be seen across the business and is leading the development of the visitor experience at the Ardara Distillery.
