Distillery development
Concept and feasibility input, process definition, equipment selection and technical support through design, installation and commissioning.
Explore this expertise →01 / What we do
Expertise across the distillery lifecycle.
Explore all expertise areas, including staff training →Whether you are planning a new site, solving a production problem or preparing for growth, Maven Spirits brings process thinking and hands-on distilling experience to the work.
Process engineering
Production flows, capacity planning, mass and energy balances, equipment specifications and the practical details that make a process work.
Explore this expertise →Operations improvement
Review of production performance, bottlenecks, yields, procedures and team workflows, with recommendations grounded in the reality of the site.
Explore this expertise →Spirit production
Technical support for whisky and other spirits, from recipe and process development through trials, scale-up and production planning.
Explore this expertise →Rectified spirits formulation
Ideation and formulation for gin, absinthe, akvavit, pastis and other rectified or compounded spirits. Botanical selection, bench trials, sensory direction and routes to scalable production.
Explore this expertise →Whisky wood policy
Advice on cask sourcing, filling and maturation strategy, wood specifications, stock planning and the operational choices behind a coherent whisky wood policy.
Explore this expertise →Sourcing & production partners
Technical input on equipment and raw material sourcing, supplier assessment and outsourced production. Support can include visits to manufacturers and production partners.
Explore this expertise →Quality & compliance
Support with production records, traceability, risk assessment, operating procedures and the systems needed for consistent, controlled work.
Explore this expertise →Technical representation
Independent technical input for owners and project teams when reviewing designs, inspecting equipment and facilities, engaging suppliers or making significant investment decisions.
Explore this expertise →Featured project / Modinagar, India
Modi-Illva Single Malt Distillery, Modinagar, India
Maven Spirits has been involved in the development of the Modi-Illva single malt distillery in Modinagar. The 12 kL production plant is expandable to 24 kL and designed to produce a range of single malt whisky styles.
Project scopeProduction, utilities and maturation infrastructure at scale.
Production12 kL plant, expandable to 24 kL
Whisky stylesFlexible single malt production
MaturationRacked warehousing for over 16,000 casks in phase 1
Energy & utilitiesBagasse boiler and vapour absorption chiller
Water & controlZero liquid discharge effluent treatment and full SCADA control
Featured project / Renton, Scotland
Leven Bank Distillery
The team at Loch Lomond Brewery approached Maven Spirits with the ambition of producing single malt whisky by making use of spare capacity in their existing brewhouse and boiler.
Working closely with the team, Maven Spirits designed the stillhouse and supported equipment sourcing. The installation comprises a 1,250-litre wash still, 950-litre spirit still, spirit safe and compound receivers for low wines and feints, and intermediate spirit.
Project scopeStillhouse design, equipment sourcing, compliance support and commissioning.
The scope included the associated process and utility pipework: steam and condensate, wash, low wines, feints, spirit, water, cleaning-in-place (CIP) and cooling. It also covered pumps, instrumentation, lighting and controls, including ATEX-rated pumps, empty-pipe detectors, level switches, temperature probes, a steam slam-shut system and the control panel.
Maven Spirits also supported the team with HMRC and Spirit Drinks Verification Scheme (SDVS) compliance requirements and provided assistance through commissioning.
Project photographs & design
Leven Bank gallery
Featured projects / Hills of Bendochy, Scotland
Kythe Distillery
Maven Spirits supported the design and installation of Kythe’s bespoke distillery plant, working between fabricators and process engineers to align equipment decisions with the character of spirit the team wanted to produce.
Project scopePlant design and installation support, value engineering and a focus on spirit quality.
Inside Kythe
Select a photograph to view it in full.
Featured project / Buckinghamshire, England
Aedda’s Farm Distillery
Maven Spirits has been working with the team at Aedda’s Farm Distillery to develop a versatile production plant for malt and grain spirits, gin, fruit brandies and liqueurs.
Project scopePlant design, equipment sourcing and support towards commissioning.
The scope covers plant design and specification, equipment sourcing, and coordination between fabricators, process engineers and the team who will operate the distillery. Throughout the project, equipment choices have been guided by the styles and character of spirit the team wants to produce, alongside practical considerations around operation, quality and cost.
By combining hands-on distilling experience with industry knowledge and supplier relationships, Maven Spirits has helped identify savings while keeping the plant’s capabilities and spirit quality at the centre of the decisions.
Support continues through the final stages towards installation and commissioning.
Project scope: Plant design and specification · Equipment sourcing · Fabricator and process engineering coordination · Value engineering · Installation and commissioning support
Selected clients
Client perspectives
Testimonials
Read our client testimonials →Journal
Latest from Maven
· Distillery developmentCan an existing brewery expand into whisky production?
From spare brewhouse capacity to steam, cooling, warehousing and cash flow: what to consider before adding whisky production to a brewery.
Read the journal post ↗ · Design & technologyBetter starting points, better AI images
Original engineering render, AI-enhanced visualisation and the physical still during installation: why the starting point matters.
Read the journal post ↗ · Field notesThree countries, a busy few weeks
Commissioning, planning and client visits across India, Japan and England—with some family time to round things off.
Read the journal post ↗View the journal →Technical examples
Free Sample P&IDs
Explore examples of Maven Spirits’ process and instrumentation drawings.
Available to view
Hot effluent & heat recovery
A 2,500 L hot effluent receiver, pump and plate heat exchanger arrangement, showing wash pre-heating, instrumentation and CIP connections.
Sample drawing preview. Select to enlarge. This reduced-resolution image can be saved; the full-resolution drawing is not published.
03 / About Maven
Science-minded.
Distillery-grounded.
Maven Spirits is the consultancy of Dr Jack Mayo, Consultant Master Distiller & Distillery Operations, based in Edinburgh, Scotland, but with global mobility. Jack brings a rare combination of analytical training and practical experience in spirits production, with whisky at the centre of his work.
Projects can call for a broad view or a very specific answer. Jack has worked with clients in the UK, Ireland, Portugal, Slovenia, Italy, India, Japan, New Zealand and Ethiopia, and is available to travel to inspect client facilities and manufacturers’ sites. The aim is clear thinking, sound engineering and recommendations that make sense on the production floor.
Dr Jack MayoConsultant Master Distiller & Distillery Operations
04 / How we work
From question to workable answer.
The right scope depends on the site and the decision at hand. Engagements can be a focused technical review, an on-site inspection or ongoing support through a larger project, including work with clients and suppliers overseas.
01
Understand the operation
Clarify the objective, the process, the constraints and the decisions that need to be made.
02
Work through the detail
Assess the evidence, develop options and speak with the people who will operate the result.
03
Make it actionable
Provide a practical direction, the technical reasoning behind it and a clear route to implementation.
Have a project in mind?
Let's talk about the work.
Tell us what you are planning or where you need technical support. We can start with a short conversation about the scope.