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Islands
Similarly to Speyside, the Scottish Islands are also considered part of the Highlands. Over 790 offshore islands are grouped into four distinct classifications – Shetland, Orkney, Inner Hebrides, and Outer Hebrides. Only seven distilleries are currently operational on six of the islands – not including the island Islay, a designated Scotch region on its own. For some, these island whiskies are more accessible than the distilleries themselves.
Jura, for example, has one shop, one hotel, one road, one pub, and one distillery; the only way on or off the island is across the Paps of Jura via a small car ferry from Islay. On the nearby island of Mull lies the Tobermory Distillery, whose peated whisky bears the name of the ancient and original distillery: Ledaig. Travelling south (east of the Campbeltown region) is the island of Arran home to the newest and eponymously named Arran Distillery, established in 1995.
Diverse not only in flavour but also in geography, the Island distilleries stretch out to the north. Highland Park, one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland, is located in Kirkwall, the capital of the Orkney Islands archipelago. In fact, the distillery pips the Scapa Distillery for the title of the most northerly distillery by less than a mile. The islands represent some of our longer standing relationships as well as one of our newest. From Highland Park to Arran, explore the diverse flavours Island distilleries showcase in our whisky portfolio.
