If given the go-ahead, the Port of Leith Distillery will be the first purpose-built single malt facility constructed in the capital for more than a century. It will also be the first vertically arranged distillery in Scotland.

Muckle Brig Ltd, the company behind the distillery said the vertical design has practical uses as the gravity-led layout is expected to improve efficiency.

The top floors will house a lab and blending facility, tasting rooms and exhibition spaces, as well as a rooftop bar and restaurant with northward views across the Firth of Forth.

The mash tun will be housed on the middle floor, the washbacks on the floor below and the stills at ground level, while the adjacent harbour will be used as a heat sink for cooling water, ‘significantly’ reducing the volume of water needed in the production process.

Ian Stirling, co-founder of Muckle Brig, said: “We have set out to create a new whisky business with innovation, education and openness placed at the forefront of our operations. The design brief for the building was expressly aimed at encompassing these values by creating an exciting and modern face for the Scotch whisky industry.”

Pending planning approval, work is expected to commence building Port of Leith distillery at the start of 2018, with an opening slated for spring 2019.