Digging Islay

EXPLORING ISLAY

Islay is Scotland’s whisky island, and home to some of the world’s best peated whiskies. But as Dominic Roskrow reports, it offers so much more.

It’s a quiet out of season Saturday afternoon on Islay, and at the Old Kiln Cafe at Ardbeg Distillery, a few old ladies are enjoying a cup of tea and a piece of cake.

Suddenly the doors swing open and in fly a group of very tall men. They all have long blond hair, an abundance of facial hair, tattoos, and piercings. They are all dressed in denim and leather.

“They terrified the cafe guests,” recalls Ardbeg visitor centre and Old Kiln Cafe manager Jackie Thomson with a laugh. “I honestly think some of the folk there thought they were being invaded by Vikings, intent on finishing the job of invading.”

They weren’t. They were just members of the Stockholm Malt and Metal Society.

“And it just goes to show that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover,” says Thomson. “Because they spoke good English, asked lots of great questions, and were a total delight, very polite and friendly.”

The people of Islay have long grown used to an all year round invasion of malt enthusiasts who flock to the island in search of the best expressions of peated whisky on the planet. Ardbeg is a neighbour to Lagavulin and Laphroaig in the South East of the island, Bowmore is halfway up the island, Caol Ila at the top of it, and Kilchoman is out to the West. These days both Bunnahabhain and Bruichladdich (with its Port Charlotte and Octomore ranges) produce big, bold smoky whiskies.

The visitors come in a number of ways: there are two daily flights from Glasgow, Cormac ferries cross from Kennacraig on the mainland to Port Ellen, just a couple of miles down the road from Ardbeg. And some come from Northern Island in speedboats, inflatable boats and RIBs.

You don’t bite the hand that feeds you, but occasionally you’ll hear a local mutter “there’s more to Islay than mere whisky, you know,” and these days, they would have a point. But it wasn’t always so. Until relatively recently the mainly ageing, mainly male visitor was there for the whisky, and perhaps a round or two on the golf course at the Machrie Hotel, or fishing at several hot spots around the island.

These days whisky tourism is big business. In recent months Diageo alone has invested $240 million in visitor facilities at a handful of its distilleries, and there are few major producers that have gone down the same route to some extent. With demand for single malt at an all time high, distilling companies have taken the opportunity provided from extending production to invest in new visitor facilities.

New whisky exhibitions and tours are all very well, but they don’t do a lot to keep little Johnny happy on his ‘summer’ holiday, and frankly, this feature has hardly sold the island to the non malt fans in the family so far, has it?

Not so far, no. But let’s go back to the local muttering about Islay being more than a whisky island. The continued boom in Scotch whisky has had a remarkable effect on local economies such as that of Islay. Money has flowed into the island, and particularly into the tourist economy. Twenty years ago there was a shortage of quality hotel accommodation, and what was available, was ‘ordinary’ at best. But there’s only so much ‘quaint’ that the international traveller, and particularly the American traveller will accept. A dodgy shower over a rickety bath just doesn’t cut it with the sort of sophisticated set that come to places such as Islay looking for rare, exclusive, and undoubtedly expensive, single malt.

But the amount of investment in the island has been staggering. The island boasts any number of modern and luxury hotels to stay at, and this in turn has ensured an all-round supply of visitors, drawn by a value for money tourist industry bolstered by an increasingly weak British pound.

The improvements are self perpetuating. As the tourists have come, so too have new businesses to service them. Boat trips to see a plethora of marine life, hiking trails, music nights featuring Gaelic singers, talks on the stormy history of the Western Isles and the Lords who battled for, and ruled them. Sailing, diving, trekking - it’s all here. And throw in some stunning and all but empty (although invariably chilly) beaches, and suddenly things are looking better. Mother, father disregard this letter.

Perhaps the biggest change that has come to the area is cuisine. One minute it’s an island of bog standard medium hotel fayre. The next it’s teeming with talented chefs cooking with the finest, freshest meat and seafood. The Old Kiln Cafe is still there and doing what it does, but Islay now offers a dining experience for everyone.

Back at Ardbeg the Stockholm Malt and Metal Society has gone, and is no doubt marauding its way at Laphroaig or Lagavulin. The cafe has returned to its default position of gentle serenity. But who knows who’ll be through the door next?

“Some people think I’m mad to stay on Islay when there’s a whole world out there,” says one of the young women working there. “But I don’t see it like that. I get to enjoy all my home comforts, and the world comes here to see me.”

FIVE GREAT PLACES TO EAT AND/OR STAY ON ISLAY

1. THE HARBOUR INN, BOWMORE:

Stunning views across Loch Indaal, a la carte dining, and seven superior ensuite bedrooms

2. THE ISLAY HOTEL, PORT ELLEN:

Rebuilt five years ago. Has 13 snug and comfy bedrooms, an a la carte menu featuring local produce, available both in the restaurant and the more informal whisky bar.

3. LOCHSIDE INN, BOWMORE:

Fully refurbished three years ago and is now a bustling and welcoming hotel in the heart of Bowmore. Its 12 rooms are all ensuites and have been completely modernised. 4. PORT CHARLOTTE HOTEL,

PORT CHARLOTTE:

Close to Bruichladdich Distillery, this is a cosy, friendly hotel serving local produce, including beef, venison and lamb from local farms, game, including woodcock and red partridge from island estates and scallops, lobsters, oysters, crab, langoustines and prawns.

5. BOWMORE HOTEL, BOWMORE:

Featuring 11 bedrooms, all ensuite, some newly transformed with bespoke furnishings and luxury wet rooms. The hotel cooking makes excellent use of

Islay’s local produce. You can dine more casually in the bar, where you can pick from about 700 whiskies.

WHISKY PROFILE LAGAVULIN

For many, Lagavulin is the definitive Islay Malt — intensely flavoured, smoky and rich. The windswept Isle of Islay instils a strength of character into everything it produces — and it’s here, nestled in a small bay guarded by the ruins of a 13th-century castle that one of the world’s most beloved whiskies has been made for over 200 years.

The intense character of this majestic single malt comes from heavily peated barley from nearby Port Ellen Maltings, as well as a slow distillation before being aged in oak casks. As the locals say ‘time takes out the fire but leaves in the warmth’.