Islands whiskies

The Islands group together the Scottish islands with distilleries, except Islay: Skye, Orkney, Mull, Jura, Arran and other smaller ones. It isn’t an official region but a common way of grouping these whiskies, which share the influence of the sea although each island has its own style. Here you’ll find houses as well known as Talisker, Highland Park and Jura, and the range goes from smoke and pepper to fruit and honey.

In the catalogue
27 whiskies
Distilleries and brands
8
Most common type
Single malt
Peated
14 of 27

History, style and where to startIts distilleries on the world map

27 whiskies

Guide to Islands

History

The islands have a long tradition of home distilling, encouraged by their isolation. Highland Park, in Orkney, dates from the end of the 18th century, and Talisker was founded on Skye in 1830. Tobermory, on Mull, is one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland, although it spent long periods closed, and Jura was rebuilt in the 1960s. Arran opened in 1995 and, in recent years, distilleries have been born on Raasay and Harris, a sign that the island tradition is still alive.

What the law says

The Islands are not a protected region: the 2009 Scotch Whisky Regulations include these islands in the Highlands, and that is how many labels show it. In the catalogue we group them separately because it is the most widespread custom and because their whiskies share the influence of the sea.

Style and flavour

The common thread is the sea: salt, breeze and often a touch of smoke. Talisker is powerful, smoky and peppery; Highland Park balances Orkney’s heather peat with honey; and Jura and Tobermory are smoother, although Tobermory has a peated version, Ledaig. Scapa, also on Orkney, has hardly any smoke, and Arran produces a fruity, clean malt more reminiscent of the Highlands.

Average flavour profile of the 27 Islands whiskies in the catalogue

Sweet
2.9
Fresh fruit
2.4
Ripe and dried fruit
1.7
Floral and herbal
1.0
Cereal and malt
1.5
Vanilla and creamy
1.8
Oak
1.6
Spicy
2.1
Toasted
1.5
Smoky
1.5
Maritime
1.2
Body and intensity
2.6

Where to start

Arran 10 Year Old is a good way in: fruity, clean and smokeless. Highland Park 12 Year Old Viking Honour adds honey and gentle smoke, and Talisker 10 Year Old is the benchmark for the most maritime and peppery island style. With those three you’ll have a good idea of what the islands offer.

This text was generated and translated by AI and may contain errors.

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