Islay whisky

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Islay

Islay whisky is Scotch whisky made on Islay (pronounced IPA: [ˈaɪlə] or ee-luh), the southernmost of the main Inner Hebridean Islands located off the west coast of Scotland.

Islay whiskies can be further divided according to whether they come from the southern part of the island or the northern part. The distilleries on the south of the island, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, and Ardbeg, have the strongly peaty character which is thought of as being so characteristic of the Islay malts, and is ascribed to both the water from which the whisky is made as well as the malting of the barley. Many describe this as a "medicinal" flavour. They also possess notes of iodine, seaweed and salt.

The distilleries on the north of the island tend to make whisky lighter in character, closer to a typical Highland whisky. They are Bunnahabhain, Bruichladdich, Caol Ila, and Kilchoman. Bowmore, usually classed among the north Islay whiskies, is more centrally located and has a flavour correspondingly intermediate between the two groups. The newest of these, Kilchoman, is not yet in production and, as of December 2005, is still in the course of construction. Unlike the other seven distilleries, which are all by the sea, Kilchoman is being built on a farm, with the object of malting the farm's own barley and distilling, maturing and bottling it on site, and laying claim to be the only wholly Islay malt. Initial availability is at least five years away but the distillery shop is already open, telling the story of the project.

Single malt scotch regions:
Yellow – Highland;
Bright green – Speyside;
Light blue – Island;
Orange – Islay;
Purple – Campbeltown;
Red – Lowland.

The island has also been the home to a number of distilleries which are now closed, the most famous being the Port Ellen Single Malt (of the peaty character) which operated from the 1820s to 1983. There is still a maltings at Port Ellen which supplies many of the Islay distilleries with malted barley to their individual specifications.

Islay hosts a “Festival of Malt and Music” each year at the end of May, with events and tastings celebrating the cultural heritage of the island.

[edit] Distilleries

Ardbeg ( 1815–1981, 1997+, “small headland” a.k.a. Wardhead )
Bowmore ( 1779+, Islay’s capital village, on Loch Indaal )
- McClelland’s ( five-year-old bottling of Bowmore)
Bruichladdich ( 1881–1929, 1936–WWII–1995, 2001+, brook-laddie “bank on the shore”)
Bunnahabhain ( 1880/1883+, bū-na-ha-venn “mouth of the river”)
Caol Ila ( 1846–1930, 1937–WWII–1972, 1974+, cull-eela “Sound of Islay” – i.e. the straight between Islay and Jura)
Kilchoman ( 2005+, kil-homan “_____”)
Lagavulin ( 1742/1816+, lagga-voolin “the hollow where the mill is”)
Laphroaig ( 1815+, la-froyg “beautiful hollow by the broad bay”)
Closed Islay distilleries:
- Achenvoir ( <1816–1818+, in Argyll )
- Ardenistle/Kildalton/Islay ( 1837–1849–1852–1852, subsumed by Laphroaig 1853 )
- Ardmore ( 1817—1835, taken over by Lagavulin 1837 )
- Daill ( 1814—1830, ruins on road Port Askaig & Bridgend )
- Freeport ( 1847—1847, location unknown )
- Hazelburn ( 1825–?, uncertain relation to the Hazelburn distillery of Campbeltown )
- Kildalton ( 1817–1837, merged with Lagavulin )
- Killarow/Bridgend ( 1760?–1818–1822, ruins in village )
- Lochindaal/Port Charlotte/Rhinns ( 1829—1929, near BruichLaddich )
- Lossit/Ballygrant ( 1821/1826—1860, ruins south of the village A846 )
- Malt Mill ( 1908—1960, part of Lagavulin )
- Mulendry ( 1826—1831, location unknown )
- Newton ( 1818—1825, ruins immediately south of A846 between Port Askaig & Bridgend )
- Octomore ( 1816—1852, ruins near Port Charlotte )
- Port Ellen ( 1825–1929, 1967–1983, large port village of Islay, converted to a malting )
- Scarabus ( 1817—1818, no evidence of production )
- Tallant ( 1821—1852, Tallant farm south of Bowmore )
- Torrylin ( ?—?, may have been on the Isle of Arran )