Samuel Calkins

Year 1 MArch

Bloom Whiskey Distillery

Regenerative Whisky via Algee Blooms
Loch Lochy, Scotland

Bloom Whiskey Distillery is an ecotourism outpost anchored on Loch Lochy that strengthens local industry while remediating the lake ecosystem. Scotland is becoming warmer and wetter, and nutrient surges from surrounding farmland drive increasingly frequent algal blooms. The project studies bloom dynamics by simulating water temperature, daylight hours, nutrient influx and cellular clustering to anticipate where blooms could emerge. Modular timber-clad pontoons dock together where concentrations peak, forming a floating production hub that expands and contracts with each season or blooms scale and intensity.

Harvested algae are blended with barley in the mash tun, then gently charred in a low-oxygen kiln, producing a carbon-rich biochar that returns to neighbouring farms as regenerative fertiliser. Every cask has a distinct flavour profile that speaks of its origin waters and climatic conditions. During spring and summer, output swells as blooms emerge, while in winter, production slows with the pace of the landscape.

Visitors arrive by boat and wander raised walkways that thread between still house, algae dryer and tasting deck, witnessing the yearly choreography between climate, ecology and craft. This ecological flux becomes both resource and celebration of Highland resilience and climate adaptation.