Scotland's first 'tequila' - but it can't use the name

Dark Art Distillery's seller Kelvin Frew with the Vespero spirit

A spirit maker based along the Solway shoreline has become the first creator of tequila in Scotland - only it cannot use that name.

The Dark Art Distillery was set up near Galloway Forest Park - the UK's first dark sky park - by Andrew Clark Hutchison, a Scot who was born in Mexico City.

Having developed award-winning gins, he turned his attention to his birthplace and, discovered there had not been a tequila spirit made in Scotland.

For a year, he has worked with Dark Art's master distiller Gerard Macluskey on the possibility of creating the drink.

Gerard learned his trade with Tanqueray Gordon in Essex, Smirnoff Vodka and various small distilleries.

Andrew Clark Hutchison, founder of the Dark Art Distillery in Kirkcudbright

The pair have now unveiled Vespero to coincide with International Dark Skies Week.

The drink's central ingredient is the blue weber agave plant.

Mr Macluskey said he had to draw on his 40 years of experience in the industry to distil a tequila recipe in Scotland

He said: "This is something different, certainly, and I'm very proud of being at the forefront of doing something that hasn’t been done before in Scotland.

"We've had trials with leading mixologists and the reactions have been great."

Gerard Macluskey, master distiller at Dark Art Distillery

The Dark Art Distillery, which is based in Kirkcudbright's old Johnston School, opened in 2021.

Mr Clark Hutchison and his brother were born in Mexico City, where his parents lived from the late 1950s to 1967.

The 57-year-old said: "My father went there with Paisley firm Coats.

"Having Mexico City as my place of birth on my passport, I was always keen to do something from my heritage, and where my parents first lived as a couple.

"It was really exciting to do something with a Mexican inspiration."

He said it was "fantastic" to see the drink come to fruition.

Why it can't be called tequila?

If you're looking for Scotland's first tequila, you won't find it under that name. Just like Scotch whisky has to be produced in Scotland, so tequila can only be distilled in Mexico.

"It smells like tequila, it tastes like tequila and it's made like tequila, but it can't be called tequila because it's 100% distilled in Scotland," said Mr Clark Hutchison.

"That's the beauty of it for me.

"There are other Scottish distilleries that have tequila, but they get it from Mexico, whereas this is 100% distilled in Scotland, here in Kirkcudbright. We're making it from scratch."

The name Vespero relates to venus and the evening star.

The Dark Art Distillery is based in Kirkcudbright's old Johnston School

Mr Clark Hutchison explains "the inspiration when we opened our distillery was all about the dark skies above the Galloway Forest Park so we were trying to get a link to astronomy, which is a big part of Mexican heritage.

"It fits with the heritage of both."

There's also a personal element for Mr Clark Hutchison.

He added: "For me, it's been a really interesting journey, because as we've gone through the process I've picked up books my dad had from his time in Mexico.

"It made me read those books, and connected me with him, even though he's not here anymore.

"It's been really nice to read the books from Mexico that he had read before me when he was travelling there. That's been a really nice journey for me."

Follow the BBC for the South of Scotland on X.

Listen to news for Dumfries and Galloway on BBC Sounds.