New distilleries to watch
While several are too young to have reached the three-year minimum age for maturation, many others have released their whiskies to the waiting audience. Here are five distilleries that have arguably made the biggest splash to date.
Ardnahoe
Islay’s ninth distillery was founded in 2017 by indie bottlers Hunter Laing & Co. They had long wanted to own a distillery and decided to build their own on the famous whisky island. Unsurprisingly given its location, Ardnahoe produces a smoky and peated style of single malt.
It sits on the rugged northeastern coast of Islay and looks across to the neighbouring island of Jura. The view from the still room is of Jura and its famous Paps and is simply stunning. The whisky is not bad either. The inaugural bottling was released in May this year and has already won numerous awards. One to keep a keen eye on that’s for sure.
Kingsbarns
The Kingsbarns distillery near St. Andrews was one of the pioneers of the craft distilling movement in Scotland. It has helped to re-establish whisky making in the Kingdom of Fife. This is now home to six distilleries, but Kingsbarns was the first. Founded in 2014, it is owned by the Wemyss family. They also own Wemyss Malts, the independent bottler and blender.
The Kingsbarns light and fruity style of single malt is very easy drinking and accessible. This is shown in the core range which consists of Doocot (ex-bourbon barrel), Balcombe (ex-sherry cask) and Coaltown (ex-peated whisky cask). Something for everyone.
Lochlea
The Lowlands was a former hotbed of Scotch whisky production, but this dwindled in the 1980s and 1990s until just two remained – Auchentoshan and Glenkinchie. Now, several distilleries have popped up, but few are more innovative than Lochlea near Kilmarnock.
It is a true field-to-bottle distillery with all 600 tonnes of barley needed for the annual production grown on Lochlea Farm, which surrounds the distillery. Only one other distillery in Scotland does this – Daftmill in Fife. Lochlea has one core product named Our Barley, which is delicious. This is supplemented by several limited-edition small batch releases that push the spirit in differing directions.
Nc’ nean
The Nc’ nean distillery (pronounced nuck-neen) is one of the Scotch whisky industry’s environmental trailblazers. Its remote and exposed location on the Morvern Peninsula on the west Highlands coast makes it a beautiful but challenging spot to make whisky.
Not only is Nc’ nean one of the most eco-friendly distilleries in the world, but its single malt is also certified organic. It was the first whisky distillery in the UK to be certified net zero in 2021 and the first to be certified B-Corp in 2022. The spirit is fruity and refreshing, partly thanks to long fermentation. It has also won many fans with its early bottlings. Superb and worth trying.
Torabhaig
The moody Isle of Skye had just one distillery for the last century – Talisker. But the Torabhaig (pronounced tor-a-veg) changed that when it distilled its first spirit in 2017. The distillery is located at the opposite end of the island to Talisker, close to where the ferry to the mainland leaves and arrives. But it makes a similar style of single malt.
It is ashy and peppery with some powerful peat smoke. Early releases have shown this off superbly and Torabhaig has won many plaudits among whisky fans. The distillery is owned by indie bottlers Mossburn Distillers and is housed in an old farm steading. If you like peaty whisky, then you will like this.
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