A century-old Scotch whisky distillery and a contemporary menswear label may not seem to have much in common, but a shared passion for craftsmanship and innovation has brought Speyside whisky brand BenRiach and Edinburgh-based designer Kestin Hare together for a unique collaboration. Hare’s spring/summer 2019 collection includes a series of garments inspired by tones and textures found at BenRiach’s distillery, which will appeal to whisky fans as well as the style-minded.

Hare, whose studio is based in the Leith area of the Scottish capital, developed the capsule range alongside his summer in Speyside collection, which launched at Paris Fashion Week in June and will be available in February next year. The designer was inspired by childhood fishing trips to Speyside and wanted to capture the essence of summers spent in the fly fisherman’s uniform of utilitarian waxed cotton. The resulting garments are typical of Kestin Hare’s pared-back style, which combines a focus on quality fabrics and detailing with a narrative-led design approach.

The designer was inspired by the whisky, architecture and landscape of Speyside during his visits to the distillery, and in particular by the eclectic cask types used by BenRiach to produce the range and depth of flavours found in its whiskies. “I learned lots about how the whisky takes on different colours and characteristics from the various old wine, sherry and bourbon casks it is matured in,” Hare recalls. “This led us to look at dyeing some of the garments to match the different colours of the whiskies.”