Visiting Lagavulin, Coal Ila and Bowmore on Scotland's 'whisky island'
We were visiting for a little holiday with family, although this drinks writer never rests when there are distilleries nearby, so of course we could not resist a couple of spirit-focused stops.
We had three different whisky distilleries on our itinerary as well as one rum distillery during our time on the island, so let me tell you a little bit more about them all.
I have had the pleasure of taking part in tastings at Lagavulin in the past, but have never managed to do a tour around the production areas and was thrilled to finally be able to do so this time around.
I never really feel like I've properly visited a distillery until I've seen the still room, as it's my favourite part. Lagavulin feels very traditional and charming. I thoroughly enjoyed the stories that our excellent tour guide Sophie told us about the history of the distillery and the people who had worked there in the past.
Lagavulin Distillers Edition also happens to be one of my dad's favourite whiskies, so it was important to me have the opportunity to visit with him. Visiting distilleries where you have a personal connection will always be extra special.
The only distillery on the island that I have never even stood outside of, is Caol Ila. So obviously it's been the one distillery that I've been the most curious about, especially as it's located in such a beautiful part of the island where it looks over towards Jura.
And it did not disappoint. The views are incredible and we enjoyed a lovely tasting of five whiskies straight from the casks.
Read more:
One of the highlights was trying an unpeated Caol Ila, and I find it fascinating when you can try peated and unpeated spirit from the same distillery right next to each other as you understand the spirit in a completely different way.
A smoky character is lovely in a whisky, but it can often be quite powerful and have a tendency to overpower the spirit. I did not see the production areas this time around, but I will definitely be back!
I did not know what to expect at our third distillery, which was Bowmore. It is such an old distillery and seems very traditional as well, but this was one of the best distillery tours I have ever done so it definitely surpassed my expectations.
As the distillery was not in production, we got to see pretty much everything and when I say everything, we even got to stand both inside of the kiln and on top on the kiln floor where the barley lays when it gets malted, which I have never done before.
If you get the chance to try an older Bowmore in ex-bourbon casks, I would highly recommend it - we tried one straight from a 2006 cask and it was incredible.
Just before leaving the island we also managed a quick tour around Islay Rum, which can be found on the outskirts of Port Ellen. On an island known for its whisky, why not make rum?
I particularly like the white rum Geal which is very approachable and has a lovely tropical character, but for die-hard whisky enthusiasts perhaps the barrel aged rum would be the go-to as it has (of course) been matured in ex-islay casks which imparts a lovely smoke to it.
My whisky of the week was one of the drams included in the line up of our tasting at Lagavulin Distillery: the 14-Year-Old Lagavulin Islay Jazz Festival 2024 release.
This whisky has been matured in first fill ex-bourbon initially before being finished in ex-South African Cabernet Sauvignon wine casks. It had a lovely sweetness and quite a tropical character of both pineapple and vanilla, blending together with an intriguing bonfire smoke.
When I returned to this whisky after having tried the remainder of the line up, it had an intense note of gorse flower (often described as similar to pineapple or coconut) on the nose. I could imagine this being an excellent whisky for late summer evenings
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
12 hours ago
- Metro
Two thirds of disabled people fear they can't travel abroad this summer
Most people take it for granted to get on a flight and go on a hot holiday abroad, but for some, it isn't that simple. New research has today shown that almost 64% of people and families with a disability wouldn't want to go abroad this summer. And this even comes after the government earlier this month published a report highlighting just how far the UK has to come to make flying more accessible for people living with a disability. The data also shows nearly half of Brits have avoided travel abroad altogether because of ongoing accessibility issues, leaving those who are disabled feeling 'helpless, humiliated and angry'. This is a feeling all too familiar for disability advocate and television presenter Sophie Morgan. She recently called for greater protections for the disabled community after the government proposed changes to the welfare system aimed at saving £5bn by the end of 2030. Sophie was shortlisted at Metro's Scope Awards for the Celebrity Role Model category and the TV presenter is no stranger to facing accessibility issues. She spoke out after her £8,000 wheelchair was broken on a British Airways flight which left her in an unsafe aisle. The Loose Women star was also held up at Heathrow airport after a ground handler refused to let her on board with a £4,000 wheelchair attachment. She told Metro: 'This honestly makes us feel helpless, humiliated, and angry.' Sophie has used a wheelchair since being paralysed from the chest down after a car crash when she was 18 years old. While Sophie checked in her wheelchair and batec (battery-powered attachment) separately on her BA flight, in transit they were attached incorrectly, which has left it unusable. Posting about it on Instagram at the time, many other people told Sophie they had faced similar incidents when travelling, and that their chairs had been damaged or completely broken too. She continued: 'There's nothing quite like sitting on a plane after everyone else has disembarked, waiting and wondering if anyone is even coming to help, or watching your wheelchair—your independence—being mishandled through a plane window. 'These are not isolated incidents; they are happening every single day. Each time it chips away at your dignity and your trust. 'The number one barrier is uncertainty. When you're disabled—or travelling with someone who has accessibility needs—there are just too many unknowns. 'Will the airline damage your mobility aid? Will you be able to use the toilet during the flight? Will the hotel have the access it claims? Most families simply don't have the luxury of taking that risk. 'Accessibility information is often vague, unreliable, or missing entirely, leaving us vulnerable.' Around 20% of the UK population has an accessibility need, according to The Purple Round. For many disabled passengers, it is the emotional and psychological impact of international travel that puts them off. For example, accessibility issues in hotels, the booking process being challenging and problems with transport links. Liz Williams, 51, from Brackley uses a wheelchair and regularly encounters issues when trying to travel abroad. She said: 'I was recently unable to attend a wedding in Cyprus with my partner as the accessibility access was not good enough. 'There are airports and airlines that I actively avoid due to the poor treatment I have received in the past. 'This includes early for check in and still boarding last, no aisle transfer wheelchair available, being told I could not board when all other passengers could due to adverse weather (not true as it turned out). 'Other problems include being horrifically manhandled by special assistance, not following correct procedure, in front of a plane full of passengers which left me crying while being transferred into an airline seat.' 42% of Brits have not travelled abroad in the last year due to accessibility concerns. 67% agree that booking travel for people with access needs is a major barrier. Disabled passengers and their families do not feel adequately supported, with 40% of those surveyed having avoided flying over the past year. Over half (56%) agreed that airlines are not well-equipped to support disabled passengers. While a further 58% agreed that international airports are not equipped to do so. Long delays at the airport remain a significant problem for people and/or families with accessibility requirements. 51% of survey respondents cited this as their main concern when travelling abroad. Source: Transreport The Aviation Accessibility Task and Finish Group report was published this month which recommends key changes and recommendations to help improve accessibility for disabled passengers. Talking about what needs to change, Sophie told Metro: 'We need mandatory standards, stronger penalties, and public transparency about performance. Otherwise, it's just more promises. 'Disabled travellers have been waiting far too long for real change—and we deserve more than good intentions. We deserve action.' 1. Mandate baseline disability and accessibility awareness training 2. Co-develop training materials with people with lived experience 3. Increase the availability of skilled trainers 4. Improve and standardise training content 5. Ensure continuous improvement of training Kamran Mallick, CEO of Disability Rights UK told Metro: 'The freedom to travel, to explore, and to connect with the world is a basic human right. More Trending 'These stark figures from Transreport represent millions of missed opportunities, memories never to be created, cancelled plans, and the deep-seated frustration of being excluded. 'It is frustrating that today, in 2025, we, disabled people, continue to face this exclusion and marginalisation by the travel industry. 'The travel industry has to move beyond token gestures and embed accessibility into the very fabric of its services. 'True inclusion means designing for everyone from the outset, so that the right to travel is a reality for all citizens, not just a privilege for non-disabled people.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Motorcyclist killed after crash on M60 with road closed MORE: Italian farmers have stepped in on overtourism with this 'pointless' £4.37 charge MORE: The disability employment gap affects 16 million people in the UK – but can the goverment fix it?
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Daily Mirror
'I moved family to Dubai from UK and one major drawback is no joke'
Sophie Pettigrew moved with her husband and their two sons from Scotland to Dubai in March 2025, and she's now explained some of the little-known differences between the two countries Dubai is becoming an increasingly popular holiday destination for Brits wanting to soak up some sunshine and enjoy a more luxurious lifestyle. In the past year, Dubai welcomed 1,327,000 visitors from the UK. This represents a 14% increase compared to the previous year. Whether you're looking for a romantic holiday, an activity-filled adventure or beach relaxation, Dubai has it all. The city is a marvel of new of design and technology, and is also ranked as one of the safest cities in the world. Because of this, more and more Brits are choosing to make the luxurious city their permanent home. One of these Brits is Sophie Pettigrew, who made the move over to the United Arab Emirates from the UK with her husband, their two sons and their dog in March of this year, claiming they wanted to give their whole family better opportunities. It all started when Sophie and her family went on holiday to Dubai in December 2024, and soon realised that they wanted to live there permanently. They went back in January to scope out schools for their kids before officially making the move just two months later. Taking to TikTok, she went on to answer some of the most commonly asked questions she's received since the move, which include how her kids are doing and the reason behind the decision. "So it all happened really, really fast," she explained. "But ultimately, we just really wanted a better life for us, our family. We wanted better schooling for our children. We wanted better weather, we wanted more business opportunities, and yeah." Dubai is increasingly popular among business owners and entrepreneurs. Since the UAE does not impose personal income tax, residents take home 100% of their earnings. Because of this, since a lot of industry professionals have relocated there, making it easier to network. This was especially appealing for Sophie's husband, a business investor. She continued: "It's safe to say that everything that we did want and expect from moving here, it's all happening." One thing that Sophie reckons is very different from back home is education. From cost to the curriculum, the mum-of-two says Dubai schools are incomparable to those back home. In Dubai, she was able to pick schools that would focus more on her sons' strengths and personalities, which she said has helped them thrive. "Some schools are more academic focused, some are quite sporty, some are more like arts and science," she said. "So it really, really just depends." She explained that as they were picking schools, they mapped out different areas where they wanted to stay in before researching the schools within those areas. She urged people to pick school near where they'd live as "Dubai traffic is no joke." As for the temperature difference, Sophie explained that their kids were coping better than she and her husband were, saying they spent lots of time in the pool and quickly got acclimatised to the heat. Because of this, they've been able to take advantage of all the activities their new home has to offer, including an abundance of amusement parks. Despite saying she missed her family and friends back in the UK, she stuck to her previous statement that the move was for the better. While she did say she missed her family and friends in Scotland, she didn't see it as an excuse to not do the movie. "Life's too short. You need to live your own life," she said.
Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Our £10k Maldives honeymoon turned into a disaster - we spent three nights there before jetting off to Dubai instead
A newlywed couple who splashed out £10,000 for a lavish 11-night honeymoon in the Maldives were so disappointed by the holiday hotspot that they jetted off to Dubai instead. Bride Sophie, from London, took to her TikTik @sophiegrace_24 to explain why they decided to leave the archipelago just three days into what they hoped would be a dream post-nuptial trip. In a clip, which has racked up over a million views, Sophie explained that the Maldives was always on their travel bucket list so they used a 'well-known travel provider in the UK' to book the trip. The 'disappointing' honeymoon story comes just days after Molly Mae Hague 's sister Zoe revealed she had been left underwhelmed by a trip she'd booked to Bali - and decided to travel to Dubai instead. While looking for honeymoon destinations, Sophie and her husband were told about a new island that was opening in March, ahead of their July honeymoon, and there was an introductory offer they could snap up as they would be one of the first to explore the island. They were told the island has seven restaurants and that construction would be complete by the time their honeymoon came around. However there were a few issues once the couple got to the island that didn't meet their expectation and they decided to cut their time short and fly to Dubai instead. Sophie explained: 'I had a few comments from people asking why we decided to leave the Maldives early. 'I know there'll be a lot of people who don't understand why we did, but I wanted to explain why we decided to. 'So the Maldives is a really expensive place to visit, but it's somewhere we both really wanted to visit and really wanted to go to for our honeymoon. 'So we went to a well known travel provider in the UK and started getting quotes. Then we were told about a new island that was opening in March, bearing in mind our honeymoon is in July and there was an introductory offer because it was new. 'It had seven restaurants, it was two islands joined with a walkway. All the activities we wanted to do it, it was exactly what we wanted. 'So in March, when the island was due to open up, I received an email from the travel company with all of the menus attached for all of the restaurants, which was really reassuring. Sophie added that she had checked in April that all the facilities would be open and construction would have finished. She claims she was told that due to a delay, it would be now opening on July 1, just ahead of their July 8 arrival, but that everything would be ready for their arrival. She added: 'Before the final payment was due, which I think was April time, I just emailed to say, due to make final payment, can you confirm that there will be no construction work going on on the island and that all of the restaurants and facilities will be open? 'I received a response to that email saying, 'yes, no construction work'. There was A slight delay, but everything will be opening on the 1st of July.' When they arrived they initially loved the island but things started to go downhill fast when they noticed that they were the only people on the island The couple initially loved the island upon arrival, but things went downhill fast when they noticed that they were the only people on the island. Sophie explained: 'So we turn up and island's absolutely beautiful. Staff are there to welcome us. 'Everything you expect as you pull up to your island in the Maldives. And then we found out we were the only people staying on the second island, the first and only people to have ever moved in. 'And at first we were like, this is great. We've got a private island. 'On our first night, we decided to go to the buffet restaurant. And on our walk there, there was just so much construction work going on around us. 'Lots of noise, lots of people. Wasn't great. Told that wouldn't be happening, but okay, never mind. 'Carried on to the buffet. And there was no buffet. And the reasoning was there weren't enough people on the island. So there was a set menu. 'Over the next couple of days, we realised that every restaurant was either not open yet. I think it was four that weren't open. And for the ones that were open, they had reduced menus. Many rushed to the comments with their own thoughts on the situation, with some saying they were 'perfectly within their rights to leave' 'So they were very different to the ones that I had been sent in March. So don't get me wrong, the island was beautiful, the staff were great, the food that we had was good. 'But when you are expecting a certain thing and you have paid for that. To turn up and not have it. We just felt like it was disappointment after disappointment.' Sophie also mentioned that the staff were almost 'too attentive' because there were no other guests on the island. She explained: 'This is a really weird one, but the staff were too attentive, and I think that's because there wasn't enough people on the island, and they were new to their job on the island and just doing too much. 'I just felt like every time we sat down to eat, we were being watched. 'Luke was carrying two glasses of water to our table at breakfast, and they stopped him two meters from the table, took them off him, and said, well, let me carry those for you. 'Now, some people might really like that, but for us, we just wanted to be left alone a bit. 'So, yes, it was nice, and we would have been fine staying there, but it was our honeymoon, and I didn't want that to be our experience of the Maldives. She concluded: 'We like Dubai. We've been to Dubai plenty of times before, so I decided to just change the whole day up, do something completely different. 'And we took our first flight home, which was supposed to be just a connection in Dubai. We brought that a week forward, and we are going to spend the remaining seven nights in Dubai.' The couple got refunded for the seven days they didn't stay on the island and the travel provider paid for their flights to Dubai. Many rushed to the comments with their own thoughts on the situation, with some saying they were 'perfectly within their rights to leave.' One person said: 'You didn't get what you were promised- totally understand why you left. What a shame for your honeymoon x' Another added: 'Listen imagine it's YOUR honeymoon! I totally get what's going on here and they are perfectly within their rights to leave, we all know how stunning the Maldives are so they had extra expectations with it being a brand new island! 'It's a once in a lifetime thing ya honeymoon! Congratulations babe on getting married, I wish you a life full of love and happiness.' Someone else added: 'The construction work would tip me over. Plus paying all that money for restaurants that don't exist is not OK. 'I feel like if you didn't have those two things, the staff being overly attentive wouldn't have bothered you'd, you'd probably have enjoyed it and felt special, but because your back was already up and you were already disappointed, it just added to the list of things, which is understandable. If I had the money I'd have left as well Tbf.' A fourth added: 'I can totally understand why you left. It's your honeymoon, you spend ages planning and then for it to not be what you paid for and you were lied too would be so upsetting on such a special trip. I hope you get some compensation from the holiday company.' It comes shortly after Molly Mae Hague's sister, influencer Zoe Rae, sparked a furious debate after announcing she was leaving Bali after just 48 hours at the popular holiday destination. The fitness influencer, 28, had planned the trip to Indonesia with her husband Danny to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. And despite staying in a huge sea view room at the Radisson Blu, a five-star hotel, they decided to leave early and jet to Dubai instead. Zoe explained that Bali looks better on social media than in real life, as influencers make it look luxurious, despite it being a developing country. In a new YouTube video, Zoe told the camera: 'Since landing in Bali, something for us wasn't quite right. 'We came here with high expectations because we had seen on social media that everyone was having such a lovely time. Lovely places to eat and beaches, and lovely gyms and coffee shops. 'But I don't think the reality of Bali is shown much at all, and I do think it is down to a lot of influencers posting the more luxury side of things.' She added: 'Before joining the army, I spent five months travelling South East Asia. I did Thailand, Vietnam, China, Hong Kong, I did a lot and spent time in these countries. But there is something very different about Bali. 'We got told Uluwatu where we are now is one of the best places to go, so if this is one of the better places, I'm not sure where the other places are like. 'I wasn't going to sit down and say anything, but people want to know.'
