Islay is one of five whisky distilling localities and regions in Scotland whose identity is protected by law.
There are eight active distilleries: Ardbeg, Lagavulin and Laphroaig on the southern part of the island. Bowmore, Bruichladdich, Caol Ila, Bunnahabhain and Kilchoman are placed on the northern part of Islay.
We luckily had the chance to visit Caol Ila – that is not only a well know distillery but also the house of a 11 years super cute black kitten – then Bruichladdich – my favorite one: I’ll write more details in the next post – and Laphroaig distilleries in a special tasting tour.
We take some time to pop around for visiting Ardbeg and Bowmore too.
I may think that two days are enough – or too much – for a small island like Islay, especially if you’re not into whisky tasting… But in my humble opinion you may be wrong: Islay is full of history and nature at its best! This island could seem small but you can drive for hours along one-way country roads and admire many different kind of Scottish views: hills populated by highlands cows and sheep, small fishermen cottage villages, seagulls versus ducks territorial fights, peatlands close to the sea, cliffs and long beaches which are changing over and over again by the tide, and last but not least, abandoned churches, dolmens and celtic crosses.
Just love Islay!!!
Imago Volant 