Located on the west side of Belfast’s Queen’s Island is the Thompson Graving Dock. The historic site, which was once the largest graving dock in the world, is best known for housing the RMS Titanic before the ship’s maiden voyage in 1912.
Today, the Thompson Dock and its surrounding shipyards are still strong with the spirit of those that dreamt up Titanic and grafted to bring the iconic liner to life. The ship’s legend is still alive and well, but new visionaries are at work in the Thompson Dock – no longer crafting ships, but spirits.
Titanic Distillers is Belfast’s first working whiskey distillery since the early 1900s. Operating from the historic Thompson Dock and Pumphouse, the company draws inspiration from its surroundings.
“At Titanic Distillers, we are inspired by the designers and craftspeople of the early 1900s who were bold enough to build a ship in Belfast on a scale that had never been seen before,” says CEO Stephen Symington. “We share that ethos of creating something iconic and bold that will hopefully become globally renowned.”
Reinvigorating a Tradition
In the early 1900s, Belfast was the largest producer of Irish whiskey in the world. Partition and prohibition brought much of this production to a halt, but Titanic Distillers is now playing an active role in reinvigorating the city’s whiskey tradition.
At the centre of the company’s operation is the distillery itself. Built into the converted pumphouse, it blends tradition with modernity and features original shipyard equipment, as well as a floating mezzanine and visitor centre.
“Securing the Thompson Dock and Pumphouse was the last piece of the puzzle for us in getting Titanic Distillers off the ground,” Stephen states. “It gave us a credible home and brought the brand to life.”
In 2023, Titanic’s distillery began producing its first whiskey. Of course, the nature of whiskey production means that this distillation will need to be matured for several years before it is sold, but while some distillers turn to alternative spirits during this period, Titanic took a different route.
“We wanted to be known as a whiskey brand from the off,” Stephen declares, “so rather than creating a gin or vodka to cash flow us while our whiskey is maturing, we partnered with Great Northern Distillery so that we could come out with our own whiskies right away.”
In keeping with the company’s authentic approach to its heritage, Titanic’s inaugural whiskey honours the history of Belfast and the industrial backdrop against which the RMS Titanic was constructed.
“Back in 1911, Belfast was a renowned centre for world-class industry,” Stephen points out. “Everything would have been powered with coal or peat fires. Our first blend has smoky, peated notes as a reference to this era of Belfast’s history.”
Global Interest
Titanic’s flagship blend has been well-received, winning Silver at the World Whiskies Awards, and Gold at the New York International Spirits Awards. To build on this growing global interest, Titanic recently received an investment boost from Whiterock. The firm provided a £5m package in December 2024 to help Titanic Distillers expand overseas.
“The original shareholders have done a fantastic job creating the distillery and getting the business up and running, but now we need another partner to come in and take us to the next level in terms of marketing and sales,” Stephen says. “We are about to go into a global expansion journey over the next five years and the Whiterock investment will be used to accelerate that growth.”
The USA will be one of the biggest markets for Titanic whiskey and the company hopes to target up to five states for export in 2025. At present, it’s unclear how US trade tariffs will impact this activity, but a potential deal between the US and UK could yet provide Titanic Distillers with a competitive advantage when exporting to America.
“We’re not yet in the US, but we’ve done a lot of our compliance with the FDA and appointed an importer,” Stephen reveals. “We’re now at the stage of looking for statewide distributors.”
While the US will remain a key focus for Titanic, it’s not the company’s only major market for export. Increasing demand for whiskey in Asia and Africa presents the company with an intriguing opportunity for sending its products global.
“The market for Irish and Scottish whiskey in India is expanding quickly and aggressively,” Stephen reports. “We’re doing a lot of research on that, as well as hoping to enter the likes of South Africa, Malaysia, and Singapore in the not-too-distant future. This comes on top of supporting our existing EU distribution partners.”
God, Coca-Cola, and Titanic
Wherever its products travel to, Titanic Distillers has a substantial market advantage thanks to the highly recognisable and distinguishable nature of its brand. As Royal Navy submariner and maritime historian Admiral John Lang once put it, “I am told that after ‘God’ and ‘Coca Cola,’ ‘Titanic’ is the most easily recognisable word in the English language.”
“From a brand recognition perspective, it’s huge for us,” Stephen remarks. “Now it’s our job to make sure that, when a consumer is thinking about Titanic, they’re not just thinking about a ship or a movie, but about whiskey.”
As Stephen suggests, the ultimate goal for Titanic Distillers is to continue producing high-quality whiskey. The company is preparing to add new products this year, with an exclusive pot still whiskey and a single malt set to join the Titanic range. Featuring sustainable local grains and a long fermentation process, future new products distilled under the watchful eye of Head Distiller, Damien Rafferty, will encapsulate the ambitious spirit that flows through the company and drives it forward.
“We just want to keep growing the brand, enhancing its credibility, and showcasing our distillers’ capabilities,” Stephen concludes. “Importantly, though we have a clear link with the RMS Titanic, our whiskey is not about the ship and its voyage, but about world-class craftmanship here in Belfast, and how people can come together to produce something bigger than themselves. Inspired by the visionaries of 1911, we’re looking to create something bold in the world of whiskey that can be enjoyed with friends.”
