We created Vapour initially to serve the needs of the warehousing and spirit maturation industry. The capabilities of the platform have grown enormously since then to now cover end-to-end Spirit Production, Maturation and Bottling. From crop to cask to case.
Stephen Hamilton
Co-Founder & Technical Director
What is Vapour?
Vapour is a web application software as a service (SaaS) platform designed to manage the distillation process in a distillery, as well as managing your maturing stock across your warehousing estate, through to the bottling and distribution of finished goods.
Why Vapour?
Created in Speyside, the home of Malt Whisky, we worked in partnership with industry experts to create a bespoke platform built around the needs of spirit producers and cask managers.
Digitally native from the ground up, Vapour puts production, maturation and bottling processes in the hands of your operators. Every action they take using Vapour paints a data-rich picture, providing traceability and transparency, whilst generating the information you need to automatically generate compliance reports.
We’re so confident in the transparency Vapour provides, we enable direct customer access, so your own customers can log in and access their stock in your facility.
You can even connect Vapour to any other platform or service using APIs enabled by our Integration Portal solution.
Our scalable pricing model means Vapour is suitable for spirit producers and cask management organisations of all sizes.
Our Business
Speyside Labs Ltd, the creators of Vapour, are a proudly independent, self-funded organisation dedicated to revolutionising spirits production through innovation. Free from the pressures of private equity and short-term returns, we are fully committed to our clients, continuously reinvesting to develop market-leading solutions tailored to the evolving needs of the spirits industry. Our focus is automation at scale - driving efficiency, precision, and progress. We don’t just make decisions for right now; we make the right decisions for the future.
Vapour is a custom digital platform built around the needs of spirit producers, not shoe-horning functions into pre-existing ERP systems.
It's suitable for production management of:
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Malt Whisky
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Grain Whisky
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Bourbon
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Irish Whiskey
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Tequila
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Rum
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Gin
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Vodka
It can be used for managing and tracking the ageing of:
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Malt Whisky
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Grain Whisky
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Bourbon
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Irish Whiskey
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Tequila
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Brandy
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Cognac
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Vodka
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Rum
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Gin
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Wine
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Beer
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Hot Sauce
A Brief History of Vapour
A very high-level overview of the history of the Vapour Platform.
Get in touch if you have any questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Discover some answers to some common questions we get asked about Vapour
Vapour is the most feature-rich Distillery Spirits Production and Maturation Management platform available on the market. The platform is continually evolving and offers unlimited connectivity into your business platforms via our Integration Portal.
We try to be as flexible as possible with all our clients and understand that some months may be busier than others. We try to be as flexible as possible on your subscription charges, so no need to worry about overage charges. If you need to scale back your subscription tier, contact us to discuss changes to your package.
Your subscription is based on the tier you subscribe to at the outset - Starter, Growth, Scale or Enterprise. For more details on the differences in the subscription tiers, please refer to the Pricing page.
Your subscription is charged via invoice on a monthly basis, quarterly or annual basis, depending on your tier and subscription arrangements. Charges are made one month in advance from the initial date of your subscription. We also offer payment by direct debit, and international subscription fees are charged via Paddle.com.
We pride ourselves on the security features of our platform. We operate 2,048 bit SSL encryption for all web services and operate an hourly backup service with full roll-back recovery if required, so your data is always secure.
The data stored in Vapour is your data. You have a suite of reporting and connectivity solutions that enable downloads of your data any time you wish.
The Vapour platform is deployed into a global data centre in your nearest geographical location to maximise speed and response time. We currently offer hosting services in:
- London
- Tokyo
- Fremont
- Frankfurt
- Singapore
- Newark
- Mumbai
- Sydney
- Dallas
- Toronto
- Atlanta
Media files such as images and documents are delivered using Amazon Web Services, again using the most appropriate data centres based on your location.
Yes, all instances of the platform offer branded customisation to include your company logo for both the on-screen experience as well as the branding of all your printed barcodes and reports.
Yes, the platform itself does not require any hardware to be installed on your premises.
In order to use functions such as data entry and task management for floor workers, you can use a standard mobile device (iOS or Android). In ATEX zones, ATEX-compliant devices and intrinsically safe cases are available to allow you to safely use these devices in these environments.
We recommend Honeywell ATEX-rated Android handheld computers and can offer remote provisioning services to get you up and running in a matter of minutes.
Contact us, and we can provide you with some assistance with choosing your mobile hardware, or contact some of our partners.
For the most part, yes, you will be required to have a constant Internet connection on your mobile device when using most task and activity features of Vapour. We do offer "offline scanning mode" in our Maturation Module to allow you to scan casks into locations where you have no or limited connectivity.
Tablets and PCs performing process data entry in the Production Module, or records management in the Bottling Add-On also require you to be Internet-connected.
If you have issues with wireless coverage in your facilities, contact us, and we can put you in touch with specialist partners who can advise on Internet connectivity, even in remote locations with little or no traditional Internet coverage.
Vapour is a SaaS (Software as a Service) platform that runs in the cloud. You don't need any specific hardware to be installed within your premises.
For floor worker tasks in maturation, we recommend ATEX-compliant Android Scanners. We recommend Honeywell devices. We also recommend Zebra ID Card printers for printing robust barcodes for long lifespan when attached to casks in your warehouse. Admin or office-based roles can use tablets or PC/Mac workstations.
For Production, tablets or PC/Mac workstations are preferred for data entry.
Handheld scanners are also used in our Bottling Add-on as well as requiring PC or Mac workstations for admin tasks.
Visit our Partners & Ecosystem page for further details on some of the suppliers mentioned above.
Yes, we have already created API-powered integration with leading OT hardware from providers such as Clyde Associated Engineers, specifically their CASKLOG™ solution.
We can offer third-party integrations to allow you to pull data from your industrial equipment right into your Vapour environment and vice-versa, providing data from Vapour into other systems.
The interfaces of devices differ widely from SCADA to web services and APIs. Contact us to discuss your specific requirements.
Yes, Vapour is designed to manage operations across multiple warehouses and distillery sites, providing a unified view of your stock and activities.
Yes, we offer training sessions and support to ensure your team can fully utilise Vapour’s capabilities. We also have in-context help throughout the platform and a set of training materials and guidance on our Knowledge Base.
Vapour is a cloud-based SaaS solution, so implementation is typically faster than traditional on-premise systems. The timeline depends on data migration, integration needs, and user training.
Vapour retains all historical data, ensuring a complete and auditable record of every stage of spirit production, maturation, and bottling.
Yes, Vapour offers a range of exportable reports, including inventory, compliance, and operational insights. Data can be extracted in multiple formats for further analysis.
Yes, Vapour is a fully cloud-based solution, allowing users to access real-time data and manage operations from anywhere.
Vapour is built for distilleries, cask brokers, maturation warehouses, contract bottlers, and spirits businesses looking to streamline operations, improve data accuracy, and enhance compliance reporting.
Vapour is a SaaS platform designed for managing spirit production, maturation, and bottling. It provides end-to-end traceability, automation, and efficiency for distilleries, cask management businesses, and bottling operations. Find out more here.
Vapour Brochure
Learn more about the features, benefits and users of Vapour by downloading our brochure.
