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What do you think of when you think of the Vivier Bunker? Actually... do you think of anything at all? The non-descript German bunker has sat essentially unused on the Castel Pier for decades.
But with a little vision, and a little gin, this blank canvas could be the spark that kicks off the regeneration of an oft-forgotten part of St Peter Port.
“We are delighted to be back in Guernsey,” says Luke Wheadon, the mind behind Wheadon’s Gin and the driving force behind the Channel Islands Liquor Company.
The CILC Vivier Bunker Distillery and Shop has set up shop in the Vivier Bunker, with the aim of not only continuing to distil Wheadon’s Gin and other products, but to become a tourist and event hot spot.
“So here we are, in the bunker,” Luke begins. “This was built by the Germans to house a generator and fuel depo, which is why the ceiling is so high.
"We have our commercial distillery and a shop with our products in, but also lots of authentic Guernsey products.
"This is stage one of quite a few stages. The next stage will be the glass doors... all of the machine guns slits will be knocked out and then all of those will be glazed.
"When we light this building up it's going to look super cool.”
Luke decided to ‘play around’ with a gin still in 2015 and experimented with a gin and tonic stand for a food festival in Guernsey.
“People absolutely loved it,” he says.
“I was approached by restaurant and hotel owners who said if I could commercially make the gin they’d buy it from me.”
Wheadon’s was born and in June 2016 Luke launched the business fully and went from producing dozens of bottles a week to hundreds.
The distillery was originally set up at the Bella Luce Hotel. After the closure of the hotel Luke moved the distillation to Jersey, but continued to keep his eye on Guernsey and specifically the Vivier Bunker.
The building was one of several owned by the States of Guernsey that were put out to the public, with the hope that they could be re-utilised.
"What we like to do as a distillery business is take on heritage sites that are in poor repair and regenerate them.
“What I love most about this building is that it’s completely nondescript. I love the idea that we can breathe life and energy into it... we have the ability to create something pretty iconic.”
Getting the keys to the bunker was only one step and Luke says there’s plenty more work to be done.
“We are just in talks about a new pumping station.Out of the four things I need, I've got power and I've got water... I don't have drainage and there are no loos, so we have to build those.
"We're very fortunate to have been allocated a grant by the Tourism Management Board to assist with the pumping station."
Other stages in the plan include knocking through a breeze block wall into another part of the bunker, to open up the building and allow for events and a bar.
"Wheadon's should always be in Guernsey. You know, it's synonymous with the island. My family has been here for more than 200 years and we've been involved with the alcohol industry since 1865.
"It’s the reason why I put my family name on the bottle.”
Luke hopes the “tourist attraction” will be ready for the start of 2025.
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