Highland Boundary
Member Spotlight
Dr Marian Bruce and her family didn’t intend to start making wild spirits, liqueurs and bitters when they bought their farm back in 2000. The initial idea was to explore farming while restoring the land and protecting biodiversity, concentrating mainly on farming Hebridean and a holiday let business. But a conversation with a friend who was moving to Denmark sparked an idea.
“We knew about the many different botanical spirits made across Europe and we had sampled a few,” explained Marian. “But when a close friend moved to Demark, we realised that, actually, there aren’t any plants in Denmark that we don’t have in Scotland. That led to a journey of researching the history of these spirits, realising they had always been made in Scotland and that this was something very old that we’d lost.”
Made with foraged ingredients like birch, elderflower, larch, sloe, honeysuckle and gorse, Highland Boundary’s ingredients read like a love letter to the Highlands. The brand’s Wild Scottish Bitters contain 20 wild plants, all carefully harvested from the surrounding land. To do this consistently and reliably meant a careful rewilding and regenerative approach.
Marian said: “Sustainability is an overused word. For us, sustainability isn’t the point because if you’re starting from a low point, sustaining that isn’t enough. We must be a regenerative business to tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis.
And that means thinking differently: “Regenerative farming isn’t about increasing or reducing yields, it’s about reducing inputs and working with rather than against nature. What we try to do here is use the genetic resources of the biodiversity around us to create resilience in the landscape.”
That can mean choices like using natural fertilisers rather than chemical fertilisers or focusing on sheep that are naturally easier lambers and worm tolerant rather than large commercial breeds. But despite the ancient roots of her products, Marian is keen to emphasise the importance of science in her approach. “We absolutely embrace the science,” she said. “The genetics of our sheep were created by humans, before modern veterinary medicine existed. They’re not wild animals! But what we do alongside that is rediscover information that was known in the past, or is known in other places, which we’ve lost. The spirits we make have been around since the Middle Ages across Europe – they knew that the alcohol content of the spirits is fundamental to the biochemistry of what we’re trying to do and the flavours we’re extracting.”
These flavours also tell a story of a forgotten culture, which Marian is keen to emphasise. She mentions the Covid pandemic as a time of particular importance to the business – in an unexpected way. “We were telling this story about native plants and trees, how they taste and why that culture was lost. People really seemed to get it after Covid. It was a time of reconnecting people back to nature. When you can do that through flavour, it’s primal. It’s a great way to help people understand our wild plants.”
Marian’s customers tend to split along two lines – older spirit drinkers looking for something different and younger people who want to make sure the things they buy are ethically sourced. Both groups are willing to spend money on products that are different, authentic and resolutely Scottish. “When you can give them something that has those qualities but doesn’t taste like whisky or gin, it kind of blows their mind,” she explained.
While Highland Boundary’s drinks have legions of loyal fans in the Highlands, Marian is looking beyond for growth, concentrating on working with high-end hospitality business to showcase her drinks. That involves working closely with Scotland Food & Drink to help get her brand in front of people with larger hospitality venues. Highland Boundary is now stocked by Jeremy Clarkson’s Farmer’s Dog pub (featured on his worldwide smash-hit Netflix show), alongside a rollcall of five-star and Michelin star Scottish venues including Glenturret Lalique and Restaurant Martin Whishart.
Still, it’s a competitive market for the smaller producer, and Marian is aware of the challenges that come with scaling-up. But she remains positive: “We’ve forgotten what’s on our doorstep – celebrating that is all we’re trying to do. And it’s not saying stuff from other places isn't great, rather that the stuff here is pretty good, too, and that we should celebrate that. When people go to France or Spain or Italy, they want to sample something that is French or Spanish or Italian and we’ve lost that idea in the UK. All we’re saying is what we have here, what we’re making, it’s pretty fantastic too, isn’t it?”
