Whether you are a whisky enthusiast or just enjoy the occasional dram, a visit to a whisky distillery to see at first hand how your favourite single malt is crafted from the natural ingredients of the Scottish landscape, can be both memorable and enjoyable. Islay is the Southernmost of the Western isles and well worth a visit just for the scenery alone, but there are no fewer than eight distilleries to visit, producing some of the best single malt whisky.
In total there are eight distilleries on Islay (pronounced eye-la) with seven of them dotted around 130 miles of scenic coastline. If you are planning a stay on the island there is plenty of excellent accommodation and whisky enthusiasts will be pleased to know that there is holiday accommodation at the Bowmore Distillery in the town of Bowmore. Guests are treated to a complementary tour of the distillery and the chance to relax with a wee dram!
The earliest record of whisky making in Scotland is in 1494 and it was thought to have been introduced by Irish monks. Many of the distilleries started out as farms producing a grain spirit made from an early strain of barley known as Bere. The abundant supply of pure water and peat made the island very suited to the production of whisky.
Bowmore Distillery in the town of Bowmore on the shores of Loch Indaal is the oldest on Islay and one of the oldest in Scotland; established in 1779 by David Simpson a local merchant and pioneer who built the distillery, produced the whisky and introduced Islay whisky to the world. Bowmore Distillery has changed hands four times in the last 200 years but traditional methods of production are still used and handed down by word of mouth.
A single malt whisky is the product of a single distillery and no two distilleries produce the same flavour and body. The distilleries to the south of Islay produce the most powerful medium bodied flavours with the use of the islands peat water for every stage of production, and those to the north produce much milder flavours since they use clear spring water. Bowmore is in the middle of the island and the flavour it produces comes between the two extremes having a warm smoky character with peaty, toffee flavours and some floral scents and traces of linseed oil.
During the winter gales sea spray carried on the wind soaks into the peat which covers the island and this adds to the distinctive quality of Islay malt whisky. Bowmore distillery uses the uncontaminated, peat laden water from the Laggan River, the peat is infused with the richness of the heather and other flora which grow on it and this enriches the flavour and colour of the whisky.
Bowmore Distillery is one of only a few left to produce its own floor malted barley. The barley used is sourced from the east of Scotland and the island peat is used in the malting process. Malting the barley changes its chemical makeup and after soaking, the barley is drained and spread out over a large floor and turned regularly by the malt man using the traditional wooden malt shovel.
At Bowmore Distillery traditional methods are used by a very experienced team, most of whom have worked at the distillery for many years. Demand for Bowmore single malt whisky is high and it is exported to forty countries around the world. A bottle of Black Bowmore, distilled in 1897 was recently sold at auction for 1400. The whisky if left to mature in the famous Bowmore vaults where the damp cellars are below sea level, keeping them at a constant temperature the year round, stored in casks of Spanish and American Oak which adds to the rich mellow flavours of the maturing whisky. The workforce take great pride in the single malt whisky they produce and their constant efforts make Bowmore a world class dram.
In total there are eight distilleries on Islay (pronounced eye-la) with seven of them dotted around 130 miles of scenic coastline. If you are planning a stay on the island there is plenty of excellent accommodation and whisky enthusiasts will be pleased to know that there is holiday accommodation at the Bowmore Distillery in the town of Bowmore. Guests are treated to a complementary tour of the distillery and the chance to relax with a wee dram!
The earliest record of whisky making in Scotland is in 1494 and it was thought to have been introduced by Irish monks. Many of the distilleries started out as farms producing a grain spirit made from an early strain of barley known as Bere. The abundant supply of pure water and peat made the island very suited to the production of whisky.
Bowmore Distillery in the town of Bowmore on the shores of Loch Indaal is the oldest on Islay and one of the oldest in Scotland; established in 1779 by David Simpson a local merchant and pioneer who built the distillery, produced the whisky and introduced Islay whisky to the world. Bowmore Distillery has changed hands four times in the last 200 years but traditional methods of production are still used and handed down by word of mouth.
A single malt whisky is the product of a single distillery and no two distilleries produce the same flavour and body. The distilleries to the south of Islay produce the most powerful medium bodied flavours with the use of the islands peat water for every stage of production, and those to the north produce much milder flavours since they use clear spring water. Bowmore is in the middle of the island and the flavour it produces comes between the two extremes having a warm smoky character with peaty, toffee flavours and some floral scents and traces of linseed oil.
During the winter gales sea spray carried on the wind soaks into the peat which covers the island and this adds to the distinctive quality of Islay malt whisky. Bowmore distillery uses the uncontaminated, peat laden water from the Laggan River, the peat is infused with the richness of the heather and other flora which grow on it and this enriches the flavour and colour of the whisky.
Bowmore Distillery is one of only a few left to produce its own floor malted barley. The barley used is sourced from the east of Scotland and the island peat is used in the malting process. Malting the barley changes its chemical makeup and after soaking, the barley is drained and spread out over a large floor and turned regularly by the malt man using the traditional wooden malt shovel.
At Bowmore Distillery traditional methods are used by a very experienced team, most of whom have worked at the distillery for many years. Demand for Bowmore single malt whisky is high and it is exported to forty countries around the world. A bottle of Black Bowmore, distilled in 1897 was recently sold at auction for 1400. The whisky if left to mature in the famous Bowmore vaults where the damp cellars are below sea level, keeping them at a constant temperature the year round, stored in casks of Spanish and American Oak which adds to the rich mellow flavours of the maturing whisky. The workforce take great pride in the single malt whisky they produce and their constant efforts make Bowmore a world class dram.
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