Dryad Argyll - the owners of Bellevue Bute
Bellevue Bute is owned, operated and managed by Dryad Argyll, an ethical, vegan business based in Kilmelford, Argyll.
Dryad Coffeeworks is directly helping to support local cooperatives and farmers in developing countries. By direct trade, we are able to ensure that the money goes directly to the small communities growing the green coffee beans that are roasted and ground to become Dryad Coffee. Our coffee is certified Fairtrade and organic.
We work with carefully selected small producers within Vietnam, The Congo, and Rwanda to produce our signature Melfort Gunpower blend. We are developing relationships with small farmers to bring you limited edition batches of micro roasts - these coffees will be strictly limited edition as supplies are limited, and will change on a regular basis, so we are always able to bring you something new to explore.
Dryad Argyll purchased Bellevue Bute in March 2022 with the intention of restoring the flat to its former Victorian glory. In September 2022 we are pleased to open for business. Ronald John, one of the owners of Dryad Argyll spent his childhood years on the Isle of Bute, living and going to school in Rothesay and is very passionate about the island.
Read more about Dryad Argyll on our main website here: www.dryadargyll.com
The History of Dryad Argyll and the evolution of our brand
Dryad Argyll began as Dryad Candleworks in September 2018, producing homemade natural product based candles by our in-house chemist. From the start, we wanted to make a scented candle that was as clean, healthy, organic and recyclable as possible. We wanted to incorporate the scents of where we live, in amongst the forests and lochs of Argyll.
Many of the cheaper candles you see for sale in stores and supermarkets are made from paraffin wax. Paraffin wax is a petroleum by-product that is created from the sludge waste when crude oil is refined into gasoline, and which creates highly toxic benzene and toluene when burned (both are known carcinogens). In fact, the toxins released from paraffin candles are the same as those found in diesel fuel fumes.
So, simply, our candles contain no pesticides, no herbicides, no petroleum extracts, so that when you burn them, you are getting as close to a pure fragrance experience as we can manage. Unlike a lot of big commercial producers, our fragrance loading sits at 11%, a lot higher than many producers, in fact we load to the top holding capacity of our wax.
Everything is made here in Argyll, the candles are poured by hand in small batches and individually labelled and inspected. New combinations of fragrances are developed as a direct result of being out in the forests and glens around our home…its amazing how a shower of rain or a dry spell can release amazing fragrances from the forest floors.
In early 2022, Dryad Argyll purchased a small scale coffee roaster, initially with the intention of roasting our own coffee for friends and family, but as a result of such positive feedback we scaled the business up and Dryad Coffeeworks was born. At this point we took the name Dryad Argyll to represent our brand as a whole, incorporating our Dryad Candleworks and Dryad Coffeeworks range of products.
