page_title: Islay whisky
section_title: Styles of whisky
hierarchical_section_title: Islay whisky / Styles of whisky
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Blick auf die Bunnahabhain Distillery (Mehr Informationen).
context_page_description: Islay whisky is Scotch whisky made on Islay or Ìle in Gaelic, one of the southernmost of the Inner Hebridean Islands located off the west coast of Scotland. Islay is one of five whisky distilling localities and regions in Scotland whose identity is protected by law.
  The region is characterised by whiskies with a peat smoke aroma, such as Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg. In total, there are nine active distilleries on this island which measures only 25 by 15 miles, and the industry is Islay's second largest employer after agriculture. Islay is a centre of "whisky tourism", and hosts a "Festival of Malt and Music" known as Fèis Ìle each year on the last week of May, with events and tastings celebrating the cultural heritage of the island.
context_section_description: The whiskies of the distilleries along the southeastern coast of the island, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, and Ardbeg, have a smoky character derived from peat, considered a central characteristic of the Islay malts, and ascribed both to the water from which the whisky is made and to the peating levels of the barley. Many describe this as a "medicinal" flavour. They also possess notes of iodine, seaweed and salt. Caol Ila, on the northern side of the island, across from Jura, also produces a strongly peated whisky. Trees, other than plantations, on these islands are scattered and the peat is free of rotting wood. (Normal peat bogs are invaded by trees and periodic fires kill the encroaching tree line.) Islay peat is reputedly the best flavoured for scotch production.
  The other distilleries on the island make whisky in a variety of styles. Bunnahabhain makes much lighter whiskies which are generally lightly peated. Bowmore, which started business in 1779, produces a whisky which is well balanced, using a medium-strong peating level (25 ppm) but also using sherry-cask maturation. The Kilchoman distillery started production in late 2005; in location it is unlike the other distilleries, which are all by the sea. The newest distillery is Ardnahoe, the island's ninth, which opened in 2019.
  In general however, the whiskies from this island are known for a "pungent peaty, smoky and oily flavours, with just a hint of salty sea air and seaweed" because of the use of peat and the maritime climate. The Island's own web site is more specific. Distilleries in the south make whisky which is "medium-bodied ... saturated with peat-smoke, brine and iodine" because they use malt that is heavy with peat as well as peaty water. Whisky from the northern area is milder because it is made using spring water for a "lighter flavoured, mossy (rather than peaty), with some seaweed, some nuts..." characteristic.
  In future however, the whisky industry on this island may be moving to a broader range of products, some less peaty than the current majority as well as new types of whisky.
caption: The Bunnahabhain distillery (2015)
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