Prior to our global launch of Cognac and Fino Sherry Cask Matured, Antea was on a market tour in France and was fortunate to be able to spend the Monday after the Limoges Spirits Festival, diving into the world of Cognac and she shares her experiences below.
While my primary focus was exploring the impact of Cognac casks in the maturation process of whisky, I couldn’t help but fall in love with the gorgeous distilleries and wineries making with this exquisite spirit. In this article, I will share my experiences and insights gained from visiting just some of the renowned Cognac distilleries including Giboin, Curvasieur, and La Chevalierie (Vignoble Pelletant).
Our latest – and first ever – Cognac Cask Matured Kilchoman has been released after a 6 year maturation solely in Cognac casks sourced from Tonnellerie Bossuet. Tonnellerie Bossuet is family ran (father and son), with a legacy that spans over a century. They have established themselves as a leading name in the world of cooperages supplying barrels to distilleries, wineries, and spirits producers around the globe. This cooperage based in Cognac, creates casks from both Tronçais and Limousin Oak. Tronçais creates a softer profile during maturation due to the light tannins in the oak whereas Limousin is more robust as a result of heavier tannins. This proves yet again that the flavours and influence of the oak can vary depending on their provenance and structure.
Staying just 10 minutes drive from Giboin Distillery, it made sense to make it my first stop. Giboin Distillery is a small country house, nestled in the heart of Cognac’s historic region. Giboin has a rich heritage spanning several generations and I met with Pierre-Louis outside the distillery.
While I was in Cognac, it was during the seasonal shut down of distilleries. All distilleries must adhere to the deadline for final distillation on March 31st , complying with the requirement of Cognac AOC guidelines. Unfortunately, this meant that I couldn’t see the process first hand.
After an explanation from Pierre-Louise on Gibion’s production from grape to bottle, we stepped into their cellars where I was instantly captivated by the intoxicating aroma of aging Cognac, but also by the beauty of their Charentais pot stills. Known for their meticulous craftsmanship and dedication to tradition, Giboin expertly combine the mastery of oak maturation with their exquisite eaux-de-vie. Cognac maturation begins in fresh oak casks, typically 350 litres in size, and spends a minimum of 18 months. The eaux-de-vie is then decanted into vieux casks, which are slightly larger at 400L.
After a walk through Giboin’s vineyards, it was time to move to a larger distillery in the heart of Cognac. Another family business that started in 1850 by the Meukow brothers, now run by the Coste family. My interest piqued when we arrived at the vats used for blending after maturation has taken place. These vessels will marry together multiple ages of Cognac. This process is carried out by the Maître de Chai or Master Blender. The Cognac will spend a minimum of 6 months in the oak vats.
My final stop was on my return journey to Limoges. Stopping off in Saint Amant de Nouere, a small village protected by vines and farms, where silently working, Vignoble Pelletant can be found alongside their La Chevalierie domain Cognac.
A noticeably different setting to my other visits on this trip, I met with Domenique, the owner, who kindly showed me around. Domenique explained that the cellars were over 200 years old and contain predominantly their own casks. The majority of their production – around 80% – leaves the site to be bottled under larger brand names. The cellar walls were covered with black fungus (Baudoinia Compniacensis) – which can also be found in whisky warehouses – but this amount was something that I hadn’t before seen. Domenique noted that the thick walls and natural clay flooring allow for a consistent temperature throughout the year. While the stills were getting cleaned, I noticed some similarities between the design of our (Kilchoman) stills and theirs whereas the fermentation tanks in Cognac production are neutral containers with thick, temperature-stabilizing walls which are believed to soften the spirits texture.
I was fortunate enough to taste a variety of samples throughout these visits and each provided a unique tasting. Typically, larger and more commercially available Cognacs gave a sweeter style whereas the smaller producers provided a more distinctive style with spicier and often fresher aromas.
The Cognac maturation has worked incredibly well on our latest limited release. It has added the rich spiciness and buttery texture that we would expect from a high-end Cognac, while allowing a soft Kilchoman peat smoke to remain present. On the finish, dried fruit, marzipan and liquorice wood allow for a complex lasting impression.
Our very first fully matured Cognac Cask Matured release is available in stores across the world, find the list here!
Sante’,
Antea
Introducing our Kilchoman Brand Ambassador, Emma! Many of you may already know Emma as she has been working in the Distillery Visitor Centre for a number of years. From hosting tours of the distillery and guiding whisky tastings to one of her popular social media takeovers, we’re sure her face will be familiar to many of you.
Starting from October, Emma will be stepping into her new role as Brand Ambassador, and she couldn’t be more thrilled to hit the road and bring Kilchoman Single Malt to whisky enthusiasts all around the world.
Emma grew up just across the other side of Loch Gorm and watched the distillery evolve over the years. Her genuine passion for everything Kilchoman, and Islay in general, shines through. She brings with her a wealth of whisky knowledge and distillery stories that she can’t wait to share with you over a dram.
You can follow Emma on her Facebook and Instagram accounts by searching for Emma Kilchoman.
Since our first production run in 2005, Kilchoman spirit has been aged in a variety of cask types but none more than Bourbon barrels. Bourbon maturation and Kilchoman spirit go hand in hand, and it was noticeable early on that the styles when combined, work incredibly well. When Anthony (Wills) decided on the character of spirit Kilchoman was set to produce, though it would pay homage to the classic, Islay heavily-peated profile, the way in which Kilchoman distillery was designed, was to create a newfound flavour characteristic that was balanced – showcasing the citrus and fruit driven spirit style, alongside a rich Islay peat smoke – Bourbon barrel maturation allows for just that.
Bourbon barrels are the most widely used styles of casks within the Single Malt industry and are sourced from America. American whiskies such as Bourbon typically only use casks once. After their single use, they are shipped to Scotland (typically Speyside), broken down, rebuilt, and sold to distilleries for maturation use. Since 2005 to the beginning of 2023, we have sourced our Bourbon barrels solely from Buffalo Trace, Kentucky. Barrel supply has proven to be a challenge, especially for smaller producers and due to certain circumstances, a consistent supply issue occurred earlier this year resulting in having to look elsewhere for a new supplier of Bourbon barrels.
After researching into numerous Bourbon producers, Anthony decided that a good fit and long-term solution for Kilchoman would be Breckenridge Distillery. Breckenridge Distillery was founded in 2008 and is deemed the ‘World’s Highest Distillery’. Interestingly, Breckenridge is located in Colorado, not Kentucky. Breckenridge are most well known for their blended bourbon whisky which is a high-rye mash American-style whiskey. Since opening in 2008, Breckenridge have been awarded many accolades and are considered to be one of the top bourbons in the United States. To date, we (Kilchoman) are the only users of Breckenridge casks for maturing Single Malt on the Island of Islay. This allows another point of difference within our maturation to the other distilleries across the island and it will be one that will add a new dimension to our maturation style moving forward.
“Breckenridge are a small distillery, have won many awards for their whiskies and have a similar philosophy as Kilchoman. It was the perfect fit,” Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder and Managing Director.
In March 2023, we received our first batch of Breckenridge bourbon barrels. These barrels are shipped whole, directly from Colorado. This is to ensure no opportunities for flavour loss once we begin using them onsite at the distillery on Islay. This decision, although not cost effective, is purely one driven by a mindset focused on how to get the maximum potential out of our spirit. We intend on working with these casks in the same way as Buffalo Trace in the past, and once filled, these casks will spend their entire life on Islay, at the distillery in our onsite warehouses. A key element which creates an operational difference for us at the distillery is that the barrels have head bungs, rather than the typical side bung. A bung is a small plug or a stopper which sits in the bunghole, the hole which allows for filling and emptying the contents of the cask. The reason that the bung is found on the head of Breckenridge casks is due to the distillery ageing their barrels vertically and this means that we have to top-fill. What difference this will make during maturation will only be told in time however we are confident with the quality of the casks that flavour won’t be affected negatively. Over time, we may experience leaks during storage due to the bung being under more pressure when lying on its side, but this is something that Robin and his team will monitor closely.
We expect that Breckenridge barrels will allow a new flavour profile to be created at Kilchoman, whilst still allowing for the Kilchoman spirit to remain at the forefront. Breckenridge’s core bourbon whiskey is created with 56% corn, 38% rye, and 6% malted barley and aged for a minimum of 3 years in charred American oak barrels. Profiles of honey, butterscotch, candied orange, and brown sugar are to be found. These flavour profiles match well with Kilchoman spirit and will remain a positive addition to our core range Single Malt’s, Machir Bay and Sanaig, and our limited editions released throughout the year. In comparison, Buffalo Trace use between 10-51% rye (depending on the mash bill) for their releases. There is a higher chance that our spirit will obtain an additional level of spice and nuttiness due to the initial use at Breckenridge.
“I’m expecting similar flavour profiles as Buffalo Trace but maybe with a bit more intensity. We’ll have to wait a few years before we get a true picture but I have every confidence they will produce a whisky with all the characteristics we are looking for.’’
Our intended production for 2023 at Kilchoman will see us produce our largest volume of spirit to date with 620,000 LOA produced. Of that figure, an estimated 60-65% will be filled into Bourbon barrels with Sherry casks 40-45% and alternative maturation styles 5-10%. Considering our focus on Bourbon, it was important to secure a long-term, consistent supply of casks, and this partnership is one that we’re looking forward to working on together.
Click here and join our Kilchoman Club to keep up to date with what is going on and to be amongst the first to know about new releases
The latest Gold Award for Sanaig has been awarded at the 2023 International Spirits Challenge. It is always a great pleasure to receive these awards and something that we are all incredibly proud of.
Sanaig was introduced to the Kilchoman core release in 2014 and since launching, it has naturally evolved over the last 9 years. Sanaig sits alongside Machir Bay as one of our two continual releases.
Named after an inlet on Islay’s rugged Atlantic coast, Sanaig is a vatting of both oloroso sherry and bourbon casks. Our Sanaig is created from 50ppm malted barley so classed as a heavily peated Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky. After distillation, the spirit spends its life maturing independently in our on-site warehouses in both oloroso sherry hogsheads and bourbon barrels. The recipe for Sanaig showcases a marriage of approximately 70% oloroso sherry cask matured with 30% bourbon cask matured. The high proportion of oloroso sherry influence adds a balance of dried fruits and spices to classic Kilchoman citrus sweetness and peat smoke character. It is then bottled as a NAS (non-age-statement) at 46%ABV.
“Sanaig neatly balances the contrasting influences of rich sherry maturation, bourbon barrel finesse and Islay peat smoke,” Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder.
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Hurtigruten Expeditions have paved the way for many remarkable voyages over their 130 years of sea-faring exploration. In the month of May, they embarked on a journey with some of their most precious cargo to date – a cask filled with Kilchoman Single Malt Scotch Whisky!
The cask selected by Robin to board the vessel was cask number 1097/2016. The spirit was distilled and filled into a first-fill ex-bourbon barrel back in 2016 and since then it has been maturing for over 7 years in our traditional dunnage warehouses at Kilchoman Distillery.
Robin and the crew from Islay Sea Adventures carefully loaded the precious cargo on board the vessel on 17th May in the bay at Port Ellen. The maturing cask will now travel aboard the Expedition Fleet moving from ship to ship, spending time on all their HRX vessels, and taking the following route: Islay to Longyerbean – Iceland – Greenland – NWP – Alaska – USA – Central America – Antarctica and depending on weather conditions as far 71° 1′ S.
The cask is due to return to Islay on 29th May 2024 for bottling back at the distillery. The remarkable journey will see the cask touch all Hurtigruten’s Expedition vessels, travelling from pole to pole and back. Once bottled, the globe-trotting Kilchoman Single Malt Scotch Whisky will embark the HRX fleet again, to be served by the crew and enjoyed by guests on its final voyage.
We are fascinated to see how the voyage impacts the maturation of this cask. Be sure to stay tuned for exiting updates on this remarkable journey!
The 2023 awards season is well underway and we are extremely pleased to announce that our Machir Bay Single Malt has yet again been presented with a gold medal by The Spirits Business Scotch Whisky Masters (2023) together with our 100% Islay 12th Edition (released September 2022) which has also taken home a gold medal in the same competition. To receive these gold medals is a special moment and one that our team at Kilchoman are proud of.
Machir Bay has been Kilchoman’s core release since 2012 and since launching, has naturally evolved over the last 11 years. Named after the unmistakable beach which can be found a short 5-minute drive from the distillery, our Machir Bay is created from 50ppm malted barley. After distillation, the spirit spends its life maturing independently in our on-site warehouses for a 5-7 year period in both Bourbon casks and Oloroso Sherry hogsheads. The recipe contains a 90% bourbon barrel profile alongside a 10% Oloroso influence. It is then bottled as a NAS (non-age-statement) at 46%ABV. Machir Bay is a whisky that represents Kilchoman’s style; rich citrus fruit, balanced with classic, lingering dry Islay peat smoke.
Our 100% Islay releases represent the revival of traditional farm distilling. 100% Islay editions are created using our own homegrown Islay barley before malting, distilling, maturing, and bottling on-site at the distillery. Kilchoman Distillery is the only Single Farm Single Malt from Islay and each edition is an acknowledgement to the full team both on the farm and at the distillery. The 100% Islay releases are created using 20ppm malted Islay barley. The 12th Edition was matured for a minimum of 8 years in 29 Bourbon barrels and 6 Oloroso Sherry butts, bottled at 50%ABV and a release total of 12,500 bottles. This edition of 100% Islay combines elegant peat smoke, salted caramel, green fruits, and a creamy, malt-driven profile.
We will be releasing our next edition of 100% Islay in Autumn later this year!
Machir Bay is part of our core range and is available across the world. Our 100% Islay editions are released annually and will be available in selected stores and bars around the world. Click here for more information about where you can find our whiskies.
Peter and I arrived in Zagreb on the 8th of May to collect the tour items from Fine Stvari, before beginning the journey to Slovenia. We spent the morning in Koper – where we experienced one of the rare, sunny days of the two week tour I hosted; did we bring the Scottish weather with us? The little port town of Koper was a delight and we managed to visit the centre before getting ready to meet the Venka Vojo team at Lord Byron Pub – decorated with Scottish and gothic décor – where we hosted our first tasting of the tour, being joined by a mix of whisky connoisseurs and newcomers.
The morning after, it was time to travel to Italy for our first event at Ferrowine. While we left a sunny and warm Slovenia, we were welcomed by a rainy and stormy Italy! Ferrowine is always a great venue to visit, with a large selection of wine and spirits and a very knowledgeable team. Our first event was an on-trade masterclass, followed by a sampling in the main shop. The evening tasting at Boss Hogg was brilliant; Samuele and Federico reserved the entire venue which allowed a full house with club regulars and new customers, who enjoyed several hours of discussion, laughter and incredible drinks during and after the tasting (thanks to the cocktail list inspired by Machir Bay and Sanaig). A quick stop for pizza and Tiramisù – the local delicacies – and we moved on to our next location, Bologna. Max Righi met Peter and I in the middle of the Colli Bolognesi and we travelled to Whisky Antiques to host our masterclass. Max’s stories of whisky making and distillery visits were a great addition. The evening event was our first whisky & cigar tasting in the beautiful setting of Atlas bar. The team paired a light cigar with our new make spirit and tour bottling – it was smoke at first sight!
The following morning, we left for Milano. Peter and I got lost and ended up in the city centre setting up our European Tour flags in front of (the wrong) café – we blame Google Maps! When we realised, we quickly headed to Baobab, the actual venue, where Andrea Giannone and Giuseppe Gervasio, the organisers of Milano Whisky Festival (MWF), were patiently waiting for us. This became a mini festival where many friendly faces made an appearance, both from MWF and the Italian whisky scene. After a very friendly afternoon, supported by Samuele and Giorgia our distributors for Beija Flor, we drove out to the outskirts of Milan to Juniper, Bresso. Alessandro and his team did a wonderful job setting up the event on a busy Friday evening. The star of the night was certainly the new make! Here, Claudio Riva made an appearance to instruct on the location for breakfast the following day, also feeding us focaccia and a special bottling for Whisky Club Italia.
Food, whisky and beautiful views featured on our last afternoon in Italy, but it wasn’t quite finished yet. We drove to Turin to our last event at XXL; a long-standing Comraich bar, which in only a year has hosted three Kilchoman tastings. This was their first time hosting the European Tour, which was celebrated with a unique cocktail menu. After the tasting, I dropped Peter off at the airport to catch the morning flight back home, while I headed back to my hometown for a day of rest with family.
Catherine joined the tour on Monday morning, where I met her to changeover vehicles and downsize to a Jeep. We drove from Turin to Switzerland, purposely passing by Lake Como to admire the views. After the beautiful drive through the green, Swiss Alps, we arrived at our first stop, Globus in Zurich. Globus is an incredible store with a wonderful selection of premium products, and it was here that we hosted a sampling. We then moved to The Whisky Store in Rapperswil-Jona where the lovely Heidi set up a cosy in-store tasting and David, her partner, surprised us by playing the bagpipes! The evening sold out the European Tour bottling as well as Fino Sherry Cask Matured (before we finished the tasting!). David and Heidi created a real sense of Scotland at the event.
The following morning, we explored Lucerne, before heading further north to Dagmersellen, in Häberli, where Marco and the team set up a sampling event that attracted people from the other side of the border. A band opened the tasting to the sound of “Flower of Scotland” – we felt right at home. The evening event was back in Lucerne, where Susanna and ‘Friends of Isle of Islay’ were patiently waiting for us for an event accompanied by charcuterie, shortbread and lots of familiar faces who made the tasting both fun and informative. Unfortunately, it was time to leave beautiful Switzerland behind us but to make our way to France for our first stop, Annecy!
We arrived in Annecy with the first glimpse of sunshine in days; the city was packed with tourists and visitors passing by the lake to make the most of their long weekend. On arrival to La Bouchonnerie, the French caviste, Damien and the team welcomed us with open arms! After a couple of intimate tastings for customers, we moved on to the evening venue, La Java des Flacons. Another gorgeous caviste where we set up in the bar area. During this tasting, we were able to connect live to the stillhouse on Islay!
The following day, Catherine drove us north through numerous chateaux’s and vineyards which make Burgundy such a unique destination. We met with the team at Les Bons Plans du Vin and hosted a few smaller tastings in the afternoon. Our next stop was Baune. Once we made our way into town, we quickly recognised the venue by the presence of several Land Rovers parked at the shop entrance – a great addition to our set-up!
Before we realised, we were already on the last day of the French leg of the European Tour! Lille was our final stop. We were blessed by good weather, allowing us to host the tasting outside. Jonathan is a huge collector and fan of Kilchoman, and we were supported by him throughout the session. The entire family offered a helping hand to make our last day an absolute success.
The European Tour bottling was the star of these two weeks on the road, along with the new releases of Cognac and Fino Sherry Cask Matured. We also found that some were intrigued to taste the new make spirit and compare it to Kilchoman’s earlier samplings of this.
A massive thank you to our customers, Enoteche, whisky shops and cavistes who made this tour an incredible and fun experience filled with laughter and knowledge.
We’re now back in the UK for the last leg and then on to Islay for Fèis Ìle!
Sante’, Salute,
Antea
Fèis Ìle 2023 is now underway! This year, Anthony Wills (Kilchoman Founder & Managing Director) has hand-selected 3 casks for the 2023 Fèis Ìle release; a combination of one 11 year old oloroso sherry butt and two 10 year old bourbon barrels.
The chosen casks were filled with spirit created from Publican barley grown in our own fields in 2011 and 2012, of which, the barley was then malted, distilled, matured, and bottled on site at the distillery, resulting in a 100% Islay release. The beautifully balanced Single Farm Single Malt has been bottled at cask strength (55.3% ABV). Limited to 1159 bottles and only available to purchase in person from the distillery shop on the day.
“Selecting casks for our annual Fèis Ìle release is the highlight of my year. I’ve always enjoyed the balance of character achieved by combining both bourbon and sherry casks, the bourbon barrels enhance and exhibit the character of the Kilchoman spirit whilst the sherry butt adds layers of richness and complexity,”
Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder
Our Open Day will be held in person at the distillery on Thursday 1st June but will also promote an online presence to make sure we stay connected with as many people around the world as possible. Alongside releasing our Fèis bottling, Anthony and the team will be hosting various masterclass tastings, distillery and farm tours, activities, and ensuring a great assortment of unique drams and cocktails are served from the bar. The day will be supported with live music and entertainment throughout.
Be sure to join us live on our Facebook Page or YouTube Channel from 10am Islay time, Thursday 1st June!
We are delighted to announce planning permission has been received to build a rum distillery on the island of Barbados.
9 acres of land and a derelict mansion house were purchased at Bentley Mansion in the Parish of St. Philip in August 2021. The plan is to erect buildings to house the distillery, mill and cask warehouse, purchase sugar cane from the fields surrounding Bentley Mansion, crush it on site and produce rum from sugar cane juice and cane syrup.
Production will be from two copper pot stills followed by maturation and bottling on site.
Anthony Wills will be teaming up with Frank Ward, former Mount Gay Managing Director, who will be consulting on the project and advising on specific rum production methods. This will offer a combination of existing expertise in single malt whisky production and Mr Ward’s vast knowledge in rum production.
Kilchoman have developed a network of distributors around the world and plan to utilise the same distributors for our premium rum.
Anthony Wills commented, “this is an exciting development for Kilchoman and we look forward to sharing more news as the project takes shape”
Click here and join our Kilchoman Club to keep up to date with what is going on and to be amongst the first to know about new releases
Kilchoman and Land Rover are collaborating for the launch of the new Classic Defender Works V8 Islay Edition. The exterior look of the car has been inspired by a 1965 Land Rover Series IIa (registration GXC 639C) formerly owned by Spencer Wilks, one of the founders of Land Rover, and now forms part of Land Rover Classic’s Collection. The vehicle features a bespoke centre cubby box reusing wood from Kilchoman whisky casks.
Islay has played a significant role in the development of Land Rover since the 1940s. Spencer Wilks, Managing Director of The Rover Group as it was then, owned the Laggan Estate on the island and used it for off road vehicle development and testing. In 1947 he was seen driving a heavily modified Rover around the island by the local gamekeeper who remarked ‘that must be a Land-Rover sir’. The name stuck. That development culminated in the launch of the Land Rover Series 1 at the Amsterdam motor show in 1948.
There is a special link between our two companies, Kathy Wills, who still lives at Laggan and founded Kilchoman Distillery with husband, Anthony, is the granddaughter of Spencer Wilks.
In collaboration with Land Rover, a limited edition Pedro Ximénez release has been bottled exclusively for the launch of the Land Rover Islay Edition. Selected by Kathy and Anthony Wills, just 639 bottles have been released, the same number that appears on the original Land Rover registration. Each vehicle will come with a complimentary bottle, however, if don’t fancy spending £230,000 on a Land Rover then bottles (without the vehicle) are also available through The Whisky Exchange.
“Land Rovers are synonymous with my childhood, I have fond memories of driving around the island in all sorts of Land Rover prototypes and it’s great that Land Rover still recognise those links, both to my grandfather and to the Island of Islay.
PX sherry matured Kilchoman was the perfect choice for this bottling, there’s nothing better on a wet Islay day then a dram of PX matured Kilchoman at 51.4% abv”
Kathy Wills, Kilchoman Co-Founder.
