Located in a former pump house in the Royal Naval Dockyards in Chatham, Kent, the Copper Rivet distillery opened in 2016. The building lay derelict for years until it was spotted by chance by Matthew Russell, who was having a picnic over the River Medway at Upnor Castle. The following Monday, Matthew drove to Chatham Maritime and discovered it was for sale and bought the site.
Abhishek “Abhi” Banik, a teacher at Heriot-Watt University and someone who built distilleries for, among others, Ogilvy vodka in Scotland, was brought on board as the master distiller. The Copper Rivet distillery was designed by Banik and built bespoke. Most of the barley, rye and wheat the brand uses are grown on the nearby Isle of Sheppey and the company is committed to providing employment for the area
Copper Rivet already has a vodka, Vela, and two gins, Son of a Gun and Dockyard Gin but you’ll have to wait until 2020 to try a Copper Rivet whisky.
If you want to learn even more about Copper Rivet, you should check out this delightful blog!