Bruichladdich, Isle of Islay
★★★★
Bruichladdich’s bold, capital-letter type makes it one of the most distinctive brands on supermarket and whisky shop shelves. If every distillery had a personality, then perhaps Bruichladdich (pronounced brook-laddie) would be the “mad scientist”: an exotic, even bewildering array of products is available to buy. These range from the traditional Bruichladdich (unpeated) to Octomore (the world’s most heavily-peated single malt), through a wide range of ages and unusual cask types… and even gin, with the popular Botanist produced here. The distillery first opened in 1881 but has had several different owners since then, interspersed with a couple of periods of closure. It’s currently owned by Rémy Cointreau, but most of the machinery dates from its second buyout in the 1930s: old-fashioned then, though not especially pretty. The company is also planning to start malting its own barley on-site, which will provide another dimension to what’s already an excellent tour.
Location
O.S. Grid Reference: NR 265612
GPS coordinates: 55.766193,-6.362514
Bus stops on A847
Car park
Key info
Daily, April to October; Monday to Saturday, November to March – booking recommended
£15+ adult depending on tour type, free for children
