The Wills brothers are off on another mission to spread the word of Kilchoman, this year their journey takes them up the west coast of the US. Starting in LA on September 4th, George and Peter will load up the Kilchoman Land Rover and head north. Travelling through California, Oregon and Washington the brothers will host sixteen official tastings (and countless unofficial tastings), concluding in Seattle on September 15th.
The1500-mile tour will be celebrated with an exclusive Cask Strength bottling of the distillery’s flagship expression, Machir Bay. The limited-edition release of just 840 bottles will be available exclusively during tasting events and from those stores visited as they wind their way north.
Have a look at the map in the link for more information on when and where you can catch the tour events
We are proud to support a number of local events and activities on Islay, from the Pipe Band to rowing, fishing and football. It was the turn of the annual Islay Beach Rugby tournament this weekend which we have sponsored for the past two years. It was a great event again with teams from all around Scotland making the trip over to Islay for some hard fought beach rugby. There was no holding back with plenty of big tackles and great rugby on display.
Kilchoman managed to go through the group undefeated and came up against Oban in the semi finals of the cup competition. This was a bruising game with a few seeing the sin bin but in the end Oban ran out 2-1 winners and made their way to the final to play Bruichladdich. The final was a close game but in the end Bruichladdich ran out deserved winners on the day and took home the cup.. And of course the main prize of a bottle of Kilchoman Sanaig!
We are delighted to announce that Loch Gorm has been awarded a Silver Medal, 2nd Best Islay Single Malt at this year’s International Whisky Competition. On the back of Machir Bay winning the gold medal last year, it is great to see Kilchoman being recognised in the top two again, this time for our sherry matured Loch Gorm release. I suppose you can’t win every year and we won’t tell you which distillery won gold this time around but it starts with an ‘A’ and ends with ‘Beg’. Congratulations to our southern Islay neighbours, we’ll see you at next years competition! Find out more about Loch Gorm HERE
We distill two Expressions of Kilchoman, one from barley grown and malted at the distillery, always referred to as 100% Islay, a second expression is produced from malted barley by Port Ellen malting. Our 100% Islay whiskies are unique, these limited editions are the only scotch single malt on the market created from barley both grown and malted on Islay. Our 100% Islay range is our reason for being and represents the revival of farm distilling once common place on Islay.
This year’s Feis Ile bottling is a vatting of two 100% Islay casks specifically selected by Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder and bottled at cask strength, 58% – Bourbon Barrel 324/2008 filled July 2008 and Oloroso Sherry Butt 443/2009 filled October 2009. Just 877 bottles at £90.00 will be available on our festival day on June 1st and only from the distillery – one bottle per person.
Spring is always a busy time at Kilchoman, we’ve had the release of Loch Gorm 2017, ploughing has been completed and sowing has begun. To top off that Spring feeling, we have delighted to annouce the latest expression of our 100% Islay range will be available worldwide from next week.
On Monday 1st May we will be releasing the 7th edition 100% Islay. The 100% Islay releases are particularly special to us with all parts of the whisky making process, from barley to bottle, completed on site at the farm. This marks these releases out as truly unique and ‘100% Islay’ with Kilchoman being the only distillery in Scotland to produce Single Malt in this traditional hand crafted way.
Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder and Managing Director;
“Since day one we have not only been proud of the traditional methods revived to create the 100% Islay releases but also the quality of the spirit produced. We are now growing more barley than ever for future releases of this beautifully fresh and vibrant whisky.”
The 7th edition of the annually released limited edition is a combination of fresh and refill ex Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels filled in 2010 and bottled in 2017. This is the most mature expression released to date and as with all previous 100% Islay releases, the 7th edition has been produced from barley exclusively grown and malted at the distillery. The peating level comes in slightly lighter than the rest of the range and creates a fresh and floral balance with the bourbon cask maturation.
Robin Bignal, Production Manager; “The development of the 100% Islay casks from the Inaugural release up to this, the oldest 100% Islay release, has been intriguing to see. As the bourbon barrel maturation influences the spirit over time it has taken on a real depth of character and complexity to add to the light citrus fruit and peat smoke of the Kilchoman spirit.”
The 100% Islay 7th Edition is bottled at 50% ABV and will be available worldwide from the 1st May. A limited number of bottles will also be available from the Kilchoman website from midday (GMT) on Monday 1st May – £73.50.
It is beginning to warm up here on Islay and the days are stretching, the flocks of barnacle and white fronted geese that arrived on the island in October for the winter, have now started their long journey back to Greenland for the summer. Their departure marks the start of Spring and with it, we begin the familiar timetable of ploughing the fields and sowing barley, fingers crossed that the weather will play its part and allow us to harvest a good yield of barley come late summer.
This year we have sown 96 acres of Concerto barley, with a small pocket of 10 acres dedicated to testing a new barley variety, for us, called Laureate. Concerto has for a long time been our go-to barley variety; it has served us well, coping with Islay’s notoriously changeable wind, weather conditions and salty climate to deliver very consistent results. Barley varieties are however continuously evolving and we have high hope for Laureate.
The barley we grow here at Kilchoman is used exclusively to distill our 100% Islay expression. For us, our 100% Islay philosophy is about replicating the grass root traditions of farm distilling both in Scotland but especially on Islay. From the very birth of Kilchoman, our 100% Islay range was our reason for being; it represented the revival of malt whisky produced on a single location from barley to bottle, where the responsibility for the quality and consistency at each stage was not outsourced but completed on site with skill, care and attention to detail. We are proud to be the only Islay distillery producing single malt whisky from barley grown and malted on Islay. You can almost follow the trail of grain from the fields to the malt floor.
With the imminent arrival of our 7th Edition 100% Islay it would seem a good time to explain our 100% Islay philosophy. For us, the 100% Islay ethos is about replicating the grass root traditions of farm distilling both in Scotland but especially on Islay. From the very birth of Kilchoman, our 100% Islay range was our reason for being; it represented the revival of single malt whisky produced on a single location from barley to bottle, where the responsibility for the quality and consistency at each stage was not outsourced but completed on site with skill, care and attention to detail. We are proud to be the only Islay distillery distilling single malt from barley both grown and malted on Islay. Not to mention distilling, maturing and bottling it here at Kilchoman as well. Look out for more info on the 7th Edition 100% Islay in the next few weeks! View our Barley to Bottle animation here.
Here at the distillery, we have been working to bring you some new and interesting events at this year’s Feis Ile Open Day.
We have arranged Masterclasses and experiences hosted by The Wills Family and the rest of the team, who will also be on hand to share their knowledge and experiences of working at Islay’s Farm Distillery.
Please read on to discover the full line up and other entertainment on offer this year.
We are very much looking forward to welcoming you at our distillery.
Kilchoman’s Feis Ile Open Day is Thursday 1st June 2017.
Monday 29th May
Founder’s Tour with Anthony Wills | 1pm
An in Depth tour of the distillery with Anthony, finishing in the warehouse where you can experience some of our early releases and individually selected cask samples.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking)
15 places available
Tuesday 30th May
Founder’s Tour with Anthony Wills | 1pm
An in depth tour of the distillery with Anthony, finishing in the warehouse where you can experience some of our early releases and individually selected cask samples.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking)
15 places available
Wednesday 31st May
Founder’s Tour with Anthony Wills | 1pm
An in depth distillery tour with Anthony, finishing in the warehouse where you can experience some of our early releases and individually selected cask samples.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking)
15 places available
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday
Distillery Tours at 9.45am, 11am, 2pm & 3pm | £7pp
Premium Tour at 11.30am | £30pp
Booking Advisable
Thursday 1st June | Kilchoman Open Day
Be a Bottler 9.30am
Join our bottling team and experience the time and care that goes in to every bottle of Kilchoman. Fill and label your own Machir Bay using our hands-on approach and get it signed by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking-includes your 70cl bottle of Machir Bay)
12 places available
Be a Bottler 11am
Join our bottling team and experience the time and care that goes in to every bottle of Kilchoman. Fill and label your own Machir Bay using our hands-on approach and get it signed by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking-includes your 70cl bottle of Machir Bay)
12 places available
Islay’s Farm Tour 11am
General Manager Islay Heads will give you a guided tour of how the Distillery and the farm work in harmony. Including a tour of the barley fields and other parts of the farm where you can enjoy a dram of our 100% Islay in one of the fields of a future dram while taking in the spectacular views over the farm and beyond.
£30 (non-refundable deposit of £10 payable on booking)
15 places available
Be a Bottler 12.30pm
Join our bottling team and experience the time and care that goes in to every bottle of Kilchoman. Fill and label your own bottle of Machir Bay using our hands-on approach and get it signed by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking-includes your 70cl bottle of Machir Bay)
12 places available
The Vatting Masterclass 1pm
Come along and join distillery founder, Anthony Wills for an in-depth discussion and tasting focusing on how he creates the Kilchoman Single Malts. You will sample whisky from a variety of different cask types, strengths, fills and ages then be guided through the process of making a batch release with a behind the scenes insight into the day-to-day life of Kilchoman’s master distiller.
Each person will be supplied with five 5cl sample bottles containing a selection of handpickedsingle cask samples to create their own 20cl vatted malt which they can label and take home to enjoy!
£120 (non-refundable deposit of £50 payable on booking)
50 places available
Be a Bottler 2pm
Join our bottling team and experience the time and care that goes in to every bottle of Kilchoman. Fill and label your own bottle of Machir Bay using our hands-on approach and get it signed by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking-includes your 70cl bottle of Machir Bay)
12 places available
Club Members’ Masterclass 2pm
Join George, James and Peter at this masterclass exclusively for Club Members. Seated on the Maltfloor you will be able to taste some of our first releases which are no longer available. You will have the opportunity to talk freely with the boys who have been working alongside their parents, Anthony and Kathy, at Kilchoman since the very beginning and have many interesting stories to tell.
£40 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking)
50 places available
Islay’s Farm Tour 2pm
General Manager, Islay Heads will give you a guided tour of how the Distillery and farm work in harmony. Including a tour of the barley fields and other parts of the farm where you can enjoy a dram of 100% Islay in one of the fields of a future dram while taking in the spectacular views over the farm and beyond.
£30 (non-refundable deposit of £10 payable on booking)
15 places available
Be a Bottler 3.30pm
Join our bottling team and experience the time and care that goes in to every bottle of Kilchoman. Fill and label your own bottle of Machir Bay using our hands-on approach and get it signed by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£50 (non-refundable deposit of £20 payable on booking-includes your 70cl bottle of Machir Bay)
12 places available
Still House Visits
Immerse yourself in the sweet smells of our New Make Spirit as it is being made in our still house. Chat informally with our friendly and knowledgeable stillmen whilst enjoying a dram of Machir Bay. These still house visits will be available regularly throughout the day and are free of charge.
(no pre-booking required) | 12 places per visit
Warehouse Tastings
Join a member of our team in our warehouse for a range tasting straight from the cask. Samples will be taken from 4 different cask types individually selected by Robin Bignal, the Distillery Manager.
£20 (no pre-booking required)
Tutored Range Tastings
Taste the range of Kilchoman releases including the Feis Ile 2017 bottling with a member of the Kilchoman team. You will be guided through each of your drams and given information on the background and future developments at Islay’s only farm distillery, producing single malt whisky from barley to bottle.
Available regularly throughout the day.
£10 (no booking required)
Live Music from 10.30am – 5pm
Trail West, Islay Pipe Band, The Blueswater and Reely Jiggered
Available throughout the day
BBQ, bar, cafe, gift shop and whisky!
All bookings must be made by calling +44(0)1496 850 011
A non-refundable deposit will be taken for each event booked.
Spring has finally arrived here on Islay and our flock of black face sheep are due to lamb in mid April. All have been scanned and we are happy with the percentage of those in lamb, fingers crossed for a period of good weather in the next 4-5 weeks to ensure that the lambs get the best possible start. The farmers are checking the sheep daily, keeping a close eye on them for any issues.
Over the last couple of months we have been busy identifying the fields that we will use to grow barley in this year. The fields have all been soil sampled and will be fertilised and limed to ensure that the barley has all the nutrients that it needs to grow the best possible crop.
We will start ploughing in the next few days. Some of the other farms on the island have been busy ploughing but we have a light sandy soil that could blow if we get a dry and windy spell of weather prior to sowing. We will not sow the barley until mid April as the barnacle and white fronted geese will not be leaving the island until then. If we sow too early they will take the seed and leave nothing. This year the barley crop will be mainly Concerto which has a proven track record with us but this year we are going to try about 10 acres of a new variety called Sienna.
The winter this year has not been too bad weather wise and not particularly wet until recently when we had a deluge of rain and the water from the field drains came over the road to the distillery, this does not happen very often and led to some speedy repairs in order that staff and visitors could get to and from the distillery.
All the preparations are in place, all we need now is a little cooperation from the weather….
