February marked a pivotal milestone as the first shipment of steel arrived on site – the inaugural pieces slotted into place, aligning with the foundation bolts like a colossal jigsaw puzzle taking shape. Watching the initial skeletons rise, one could almost envision the building’s musculature emerging from the bare bones.

With each bolt tightened, the sense of bearing witness to an industrial genesis intensified. The new Ardgowan Distillery arising from the landscape into which the previous Ardgowan Distillery has been bombed and burned during WW II.

What had previously existed only as blueprints and computer renderings was materialising into a tangible, inhabitable form through sheer human ingenuity. While an overwhelming amount of work still loomed, that first frame erected stirred an undeniable feeling – this was no longer merely a project on paper, but a building in the making.