Live on Martha’s Vineyard long enough and you might pick up some strong opinions about what makes the Island unique. And for every other island out there, we imagine there are plenty of locals with some equally strong opinions. So, we decided to call them up and ask them about the island they call home.
THE ISLAND: The Orkney Islands, Scotland
THE ISLANDER: Stuart Brown
THE STORY IN BRIEF: The Orkney Islands archipelago sits off the north coast of mainland Scotland and is comprised of seventy islands, twenty of which are inhabited. The largest of the islands is about 200 square miles and is somewhat confusingly called the Mainland. The islands are home to many Neolithic sites. They’re also home to Stuart Brown, who lives in Deerness, a part of the Mainland island. He runs the Deerness Distillery, which he founded with his wife, Adelle.
LOCAL SPIRITS The image that comes to mind when one pictures a distillery on a Scottish island may be of a centuries-old operation sitting on wind-whipped cliffs producing Scotch so peaty it smells like a cigar box. Only some of this is true when it comes to Deerness Distillery. The surrounding landscape is rugged and weather-beaten, but the new distillery, founded in 2016, makes several types of gin and vodka alongside its amber-colored offering. That sea air is great for growing many of the ingredients they use to make their spirits, Brown said.
SEEKING BALANCE: Orkney serves as a major cruise destination and Brown sees that as a good thing. “People coming from all over the world to Orkney are buying and seeing all the fantastic produce, so it supports everybody,” he said. But there’s also a traditional way of life that islanders want to protect. “In one day, you might have more tourists on the island than you would have locals on the island, and I think everything got a bit stretched. It’s just a balancing act.”
LIFE OF THE PARTY: Islanders stay warm during cold months with a “harvest home.” These celebrations of the end of the growing season “involve food, some drink, and a good dance – a bit of a knees up,” he said. “The community will get all the oldies out. From young kids right the way through. They’ll all be at the harvest homes.”
