West with the Sun

Sea, salt and peat – John Bruce explores the unique malts of Islay

Actually two is an appropriate number as Islay exhibits many divisions both historical and geographical that one cannot avoid as exemplified by the following tale. A great friend of mine, Stewart Saunders, once told me of the grand hospitality he and his wife Mhairi were enjoying at a small bed and breakfast on Islay while over visiting friends. Every morning they were greeted with a glorious breakfast, beaming smiles and benedictions both in the house and at the local shop. Until, that is, they let slip that their friends from the western side of the island were Campbells, at which point rationing was reintroduced, smiles were rarer than Tory councillors in Glasgow and the newspaper was always sold out. Islay, you see, has seen the great rivalry between the Campbells and the MacDonalds played out down the centuries and the clans neither forget nor forgive.
When talking of Islay malts it is impossible to ignore the giant that is Laphroaig. Distilled on the southern tip of the island this is perhaps the malt whisky that engenders the strongest feelings in the whisky drinking population. Some love it, but far more are repelled by the intensity of the Laphroaig experience. Distilled from the naturally brown spring waters of the island, redolent of the salt spray that blows in from the ocean and suffused with the flavour of peat, it in fact bears very little resemblance to any malt from the Scottish mainland. Personally, I was no great lover of Laphroaig until an older, more dedicated hedonist guided me in the only way to appreciate this unique malt. Water is a must and not the wee sprinkle that one might temper a Speyside malt with. Laphroaig demands a minimum of “the same again” and perhaps even a tiny bit more. Try this and be amazed; the overpowering giant becomes an avuncular companion of the evening. Heading north and east, although no great distance, one encounters the distillery of Caol Ila, the Gaelic name for the Sound of Islay and the home of one of my very favourite malt whiskies. Malt from the maltings at Port Ellen, water from Loch Nam Ban and a traditional distilling process produce a whisky that has accompanied me on many an evening of delight. The 18-year-old is truly infused with echoes of sea, salt and peat along with that certain “dinnae ken what” that combine to produce a magnificent whisky which, if Stewart had thought to bring a bottle, could even unite the clans. - J.B.

For more information please write to whisky@hkgolfer.com

Pages

Click here to see the published article.