Caol Ila Distillery

Region: Scotland

Caol Ila - Pronounced “Cull Eela”. It’s the Gaelic name for the Sound of Islay, which separates the island from Jura. For some, the distillery’s pronunciation is as remote as its location, sitting as it does on the rugged eastern coast, where it has remained hidden from view since 1846. However you say it, the fine, smoky whisky produced by generations of islanders is worth exploring.

For more than 100 years small coal-fired “puffers” like the SS Pibroch brought barley, coal and empty casks to the distillery, returning her whisky to the mainland through the Sound of Islay. Today, Caol Ila’s secret bay is only known to true Islay devotees. The barley used here is still malted locally at Port Ellen and pure spring water still rises from limestone in nearby Loch Nam Ban, then falls to the sea at Caol Ila in a clear crystal stream, just as it always has.

 

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