History + Farm

 Glynhynod Farm (meaning Remarkable Valley in Welsh), the home of Dà Mhìle distillery, has been owned and run by the Savage-Onstwedder family since July 1981.

John, Patrice and Paula came to Wales from their native Holland with dreams of setting up a centre for organic farming and self-sufficiency. Their first venture was using Patrice’s cheese making skills to make the wonderful raw milk Caws Teifi Cheese, which is still made on the farm to this day. 

10 years after establishing Caws Teifi Cheese, John spotted a gap in the market for organic whisky (a big gap in fact as there was no such thing at the time). In 1992 he commissioned Springbank distillery to make him a whisky, establishing Dà Mhìle and creating the first organic whisky of the modern era! Our name was inspired by the initial bottling which was done to celebrate the millennium, (Dà Mhìle translates to ‘two thousand’ in Scots-Galic/Dwy Fil yn Gymraeg).

One further batch of organic whisky was commissioned at Loch Lomond distillery in the year 2000 and then in 2012 our vision was realised and we opened the doors to our very own distillery on the farm. 

Since then we’ve not only continued making whisky but also other organic spirits, from Dark Skies Rum to Seaweed Gin, all inspired by our history and surroundings.

Today the farm and family businesses are run by Patrice and John’s two sons; John-James and Robert, who are actively ensuring Dà Mhìle continues making the wonderful organic spirits we’ve become known for. Our spirits are sold at local farmer’s marketslocal shops, wine & spirits merchants, and online. We also sell our products here on our online shop.

Come and visit our small farm shop or attend one of our events on the farm where we are passionate about reviving the original mission of education of all things organic, artisan food, drink and farming - so keep an eye on our website and social media for news and updates!