The Kilchoman distillery was founded in 2005 at the Rochside Farm, not far from Machir Bay at Islay’s West Coast. Kilchoman is Scotland’s most Westerly whisky distillery and draws its water from a spring on Cnoc Dubh, just above Rochside Farm. The Kilchoman distillery is the brainchild of Anthony Wills, a former wine industry professional who wished to found a small-scale, traditional distillery. Subsequently Mark and Rohaise French, of the Rochside Farm, were keen on using local produce (and had their own food label, Islay Fine Food), so the idea of establishing an artisan, traditional distillery fitted in perfectly with their ethos. The farm is entirely self-contained, Barley is grown and malted at the distillery, maturations will take place onsite, as will bottling. The resultant single malt Scotch whisky will not undergo chill-filtration nor will spirit caramel be added, the standard strength will be at 50% abv, reduced with Islay water. Distillation commenced in November of 2005 and 80% of the spirit is matured in ex-bourbon casks, from Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky, the remaining spirit will be matured in Oloroso sherry butts. There is a visitor centre on the site and a Kilchoman new make spirit has already been released, exhibiting a distinct nuttiness and a sumptuous peat even at this early stage. The two stills at the Kilchoman whisky distillery proffer a total capacity of just 90,000 litres per annum, in terms of scale the Kilchoman distillery is of roughly equal capacity to the Edradour distillery.
Showing all 22 results
Tasting Notes
Colour: Rich copper. This is supported by Kilchoman’s description of the loch’s dark waters being reflected in the whisky’s rich coppery tones.
Nose: Caramelised custard tart, freshly roasted coffee, and notes of candied ginger.
Palate: Honey roasted figs, cloves, and sticky toffee pudding with a suggestive smokiness evocative of barbecued bananas.
Finish: Lingering, savoury, smoky, and earthy
Tasting Notes
Colour: Bright gold. This is an inference based on bourbon-cask maturation and product imagery rather than a formally published colour note.
Nose: Vanilla, tropical fruits, fresh hay, toasted oak, grassy notes, and salted butter.
Palate: Milk chocolate, salted caramel, fresh peat smoke, candied citrus fruits, lemon, ripe pear, and hints of white pepper.
Finish: Lingering maritime peat smoke with fresh fruits and honied sweetness.
The 14th edition of 100% Islay was matured in ex-bourbon barrels and sherry casks, offering a creamy and fruity character, underpinned by peat smoke. Aromas of toffee-apple, candied pineapple, and ginger cake fill the nose, complemented by a fresh peat smoke and hints of stewed fruit.
The 12th edition of Kilchoman 100% Islay is a single-farm single malt, made with Islay-grown barley from a single farm that is malted and distilled on Islay, before being matured in 29 ex-bourbon barrels and six oloroso sherry butts for at least eight years. Aromas of sweet peat smoke, honey drizzled orange slices, vanilla and salted caramel fill the nose, complemented by notes of apples and pears, ginger spice, raisins, toffee, peat smoke and caramel throughout the palate and lingering in the finish.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep gold to amber. This is an inference based on sherry-cask maturation and bottle imagery rather than a formally published colour note.
Nose: Orange peel, dried fruits, light peat smoke, and sweet spices.
Palate: Rich smoke and dark chocolate with honey, cooked apples, and malty sweetness.
Finish: Grilled fruits, plums, currants, and lasting wood smoke.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Gold with copper reflections. This is supported by retailer description rather than an official Kilchoman colour note.
Nose: Fragrant and delicate, with fresh pineapple, hibiscus, and lemon sherbet.
Palate: Herbal and smoky, with dried apple granola, caramelised puffed wheat, buttered popcorn, and layered peat influence.
Finish: Lightly spicy and fruit-led, with orchard-fruit freshness and lingering maritime smoke. The orchard-fruit wording is supported by retailer tasting notes, while the maritime smoke element follows Kilchoman’s official style description.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep gold to amber. This is an inference based on the sherry-cask style and bottle imagery rather than a formally published distillery colour note.
Nose: BBQ glaze, singed raisins, bold peat smoke, cracked black pepper, and dark cherries.
Palate: Warming and intense, with clove, liquorice, roasted nuts, sticky sherry-soaked fruit, and a dark chocolate edge moving through the smoke.
Finish: Sweet spice, savoury smoke, and a final echo of grilled plums.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep amber. This is an inference based on sherry-butt maturation and bottle imagery rather than a formally published distillery colour note.
Nose: Dried fruit, bonfire smoke, dark chocolate, and baking spices.
Palate: Powerful and dry, with herbal and vegetal edges, raisin bread, blackberries, fermented grapes, and sherried depth. This note combines retailer description with published Whiskybase review language, lightly cleaned for readability.
Finish: Quite short, dry, and tart, with herbal notes, menthol-like freshness, and lingering oak. This is based on a published Whiskybase review and lightly polished into product-page format.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep gold. This is an inference based on bourbon-cask maturation and bottle imagery rather than a formally published distillery colour note.
Nose: Butterscotch and vanilla bean leap out, with toasted coconut, crème brûlée, and gentle oak smoke in the background.
Palate: Smooth and structured, with caramel, spiced apple, vanilla fudge, a touch of pepper, and salty driftwood.
Finish: Long and warming, with honeycomb, sea breeze, and subtle sweet smoke wrapped in soft oak.
Kilchoman Batch Strength was aged in a combination of re-charred red wine casks, oloroso sherry butts and bourbon barrels. The result is a heavy dram with notes of stewed plums, citrus oils, bonfire smoke and hints of salted caramel.
Batch Strength from Islay’s Kilchoman is bottled at a hearty 57% ABV. The peated single malt is matured in a combo of re-charred red wine casks, oloroso sherry butts, and bourbon barrels, imparting rich notes of caramel and spiced dark fruit to the zesty, smoky malt at its core.
A limited-edition single malt from Kilchoman, Casado takes its name from the Portuguese word for marriage. Initially matured in 38 first-fill ex-bourbon barrels, it was then married in a pair of Portuguese red wine vats for two years before it was bottled. Aromas of intense campfire smoke, ripe plums, cherries, peaches, marzipan and sea spray fill the nose, complemented by notes of black pepper, salty peat smoke, apricot, lemon, stewed plums, apricot jam and rich smoke throughout the palate and lingering in the finish.
unusual release from Kilchoman, this isn’t a finish, instead it’s entirely matured in 300 litre Cognac casks which come from Tonellerie Bossuet. Kilchoman used a 50ppm heavily-peated new-make spirit, which then went into 32 300 litre French oak casks for a minimum of six years. The result was bottled at 50% ABV with no colour or chill-filtering.
Something you don’t see everyday, an Islay single malt entirely aged in fino sherry casks. Kilchoman founder Anthony sourced 20 fino sherry butts from Bodega Jose y Miguel Martin in Jerez to mature his whisky in. This release spent a minimum of five years ageing before bottling in 2023 at 50% ABV. Fino, the lightest and freshest style of sherry, imparts quite different flavours to the more commonly seen oloroso or PX. So there will be no dried fruit or big spices here, thank you very much. Instead think of fresh apples, almonds and a salty note that perfectly compliments the smoky Kilchoman character.
The 2023-release of Kilchoman Loch Gorm single malt has been matured in a combination of 20 first-fill oloroso sherry casks and two refill oloroso sherry casks for at least eight years, before being bottled in 2023. Aromas of sweet pipe smoke, ripe strawberries, candied lemon peel, orange blossom, toffee and clove fill the nose, complemented by notes of dark chocolate, toasted walnuts, tobacco smoke, caramel, dates, liquorice, earthy peat smoke and cinnamon throughout the palate.
The sought-after Loch Gorm releases are named after the body of water overlooked by Kilchoman distillery. This 2024 edition was matured exclusively in oloroso sherry butts from Bodega JosĂ© y Miguel MartĂn and offers a rich and smoky treat for Islay whisky fans. You can expect waves of barbeque smoke on the nose, which are met with cacao nibs and figs. The peat persists on the palate and is punctuated by honey roasted cashews, cinnamon and salted toffee.
Kilchoman’s ongoing Machir Bay is a vatting of whisky matured in first-fill bourbon casks for around six years, married and then finished in oloroso sherry butts before bottling.
Tasting Notes
Colour: Deep golden, richer than the standard expression.
Nose: Bold and smoky, with sweet vanilla and caramel from the bourbon barrels, layered with citrus and tropical fruit, plus hints of floral and mineral complexity.
Palate: Full-bodied and warming, with creamy malt sweetness balancing maritime peat smoke, fresh and candied citrus, toffee, and subtle spice.
Finish: Long and lingering, with smoke gradually giving way to vanilla, toasted coconut, and a soft saline note.
This 2023-release from Kilchoman was exclusively matured in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks, bringing a rich, sweet character to its peated malt. There are aromas of raisin and peat smoke stacked on top of each other with notes of candied citrus, dark chocolate, Manuka honey and salty peat smoke on the palate.
Here is the 2023 release from Kilchoman of its Sherry Cask Matured whisky, this time exclusively matured in Pedro Ximénez (PX) sherry casks. It was bottled at 50% ABV and you can expect lots of dark and sweet fruit, creamy nutty notes, and aromatic spice to interplay with the coastal Islay smoke.
Originally released in France, Sanaig was given a wider release in 2016. Aged in a combination of oloroso-sherry and bourbon casks, this shows excellent balance between peat smoke and sweet citrus flavours.
This cask-strength expression of Kilchoman’s vibrant peated spirit amps up the proportion of sherry casks used in its maturation, adding notes of rich chocolate into its citrus and elegant smoke.
A limited edition treat from Kilchoman! This is a cask-strength edition of the Islay distillery’s Sanaig single malt, bottled at a robust 57.8% ABV. It follows the same recipe as the classic Sanaig, vatted from both bourbon and sherry casks, and the oloroso influence shines alongside notes of rich peat smoke and cooked fruits in this higher strength expression.
Limited edition fruity single malt from Kilchoman, matured for a minimum of five years in first-fill and refill Sauternes casks. An old favourite of Kilchoman fans, this dram displays mouthwatering notes of butterscotch, candied apricots, salty peat smoke and a long, lingering finish.
A limited edition release from Islay’s Kilchoman distillery, this is the 2024 edition of its Sauternes Cask Matured single malt. This expression spent its full maturation (a minimum of five years) in a host of fresh and refill sauternes sweet wine casks selected by Kilchoman founder Anthony Wills to achieve a perfect balance of buttery sweetness, grilled fruit, sweet spice, and floral peat.
The excellent Kilchoman Small Batch Release is a limited edition whisky that uses the finest casks available for maturation. This exclusive small batch release includes some whiskies matured in ex-bourbon, ex-sherry and STR casks.
STR casks are an innovation not found in many distilleries and were created by the late Jim Swan. The abbreviation stands for ‘shaved, toasted and recharred’.
Each cask previously contained red wine, and to tame some of the overpowering red wine flavours, the casks are shaved on the inside to expose the active wood. This is then toasted to break down the harder oak elements such as cellulose. The barrel is then charred to create an active charring layer that improves the interaction with the maturing spirit.
The bottles were bottled at 48,7 % alcohol and no chill filtration or colouring was used in the production process. The whisky is presented in a gift box.
Don't have an account yet? Sign up
No items in your cart. Go on, fill it up with something you love!
Start Shopping Now