| Region: Islay | |
|---|---|
| Location | Islay |
| Founded | 1881 |
| Location map | |
Bunnahabhain (Scottish Gaelic: Bun na h-Abhainn) is a village on the northeast coast of the isle of Islay, which is in the Argyll and Bute area of Scotland, in the Inner Hebrides group of islands. It is also the name of a Scotch whisky distillery located there.
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The village was established in 1881 to house the distillery's workers, and the distillery still employs the majority of the village's workers.
The surrounding area is also steeped in local history. The ruined village of Margadale, nestled between Margadale Hill and Scarbh Bhreac, was once the busiest marketplace on Islay, with people coming from all over the island for cattle sales.
The name of the village comes from the Scottish Gaelic name Bun na h-Abhainn, meaning Foot of the River.
The distillery in the village produces The Bunnahabhain (Boon-a-havn) which is one of the milder Islay whiskies available and its taste varies greatly from other spirits to be found on the island of Islay, off the west coast of Scotland. The distillery was built in 1881 and sits below the northeast tip of the island just north of Port Askaig. It overlooks a narrow belt of water (the Sound of Islay) with a view of the neighbouring island of Jura (which also has a working distillery) and its famous hills, the "Paps of Jura".
The area is rich in wildlife, boasting large numbers of red deer, roe deer, wild goats, otters, common and grey seals, seabirds such as cormorants and oystercatchers and also Lepidoptera, with peacock and speckled wood butterflies being a common sight.
Perched on the rocks to the south of the village is the wreck of the 338-ton trawler “Wyre Majestic” which ran aground after hitting the rocks at Rubha a’Mhail on October 18, 1974. Despite efforts from the crew of its sister ship, “Wyre Defence”, the ship was deemed unsalvageable and has sat on the rocks ever since, as do approximately 50 other ships wrecked in the perilous Sound of Islay.