Timeline 2023
January 2023: Comraich Batch No. 6 released
In January 2023, Kilchoman released Batch No. 6 of the Comraich range. These editions, bottled in batches for the bars of the same name, are intended solely for serving in the more than 100 whisky bars worldwide that have been granted Comraich Bar status by Kilchoman.
Batch No. 6 was a Calvados double cask finish. This means that four bourbon casks from 2011 and 2012 were finished for one year in two fresh 400-litre Calvados casks. In total, the whisky – bottled at cask strength of 53.8 per cent – was 10 years old, with a yield of 730 bottles.
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13 March 2023: Loch Gorm 2023 released
In 2023, too, the annual Loch Gorm release was the first Limited Edition Kilchoman bottling of the year.
For the 2023 edition of this range – which, as is well known, is named after the famous lake situated near the distillery and has been matured exclusively in Oloroso sherry casks – Kilchoman’s founder Anthony Wills and production director Robin Bignal once again selected 22 Oloroso sherry butts. Eight casks from 2013, six from 2014 and eight from 2015 were blended together. As is always the case with Kilchoman, the 500-litre sherry butts came from the Bodega José y Miguel Martín and were filled with spirit having a phenol content of 50 ppm. The vatting of these 22 casks, diluted to 46 per cent, yielded 18,000 bottles.
“Rather than dominating, Loch Gorm’s oloroso maturation works in harmony with the natural character of Kilchoman. The 2023 release has a fantastic spectrum of flavour, from rich spices and macerated peaches to fresh citrus, ginger, orange zest and waves of salty peat smoke.” Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder.
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16 April – 28 May 2023: European Tour
After a few years’ hiatus due to the COVID pandemic, Kilchoman embarked on a new European tour. As in 2014, 2015 and 2018, the Kilchoman Land Rover, fully loaded with whisky and merchandise, set off once again on its journey across Europe.
The tour, organised by various members of the Kilchoman marketing and sales team, began on 16 April in Luxembourg. After countless events – ranging from small afternoon information stands to in-depth evening tastings – in 13 countries, the Kilchoman Land Rover returned to Islay just in time for the Islay Festival, Fèis Ìle.
As with every European Tour, there was once again a special Kilchoman bottling in 2023, available exclusively at the tour stops. Whilst this used to traditionally be a Machir Bay bottling at cask strength, this time the decision was made to release a Small Batch of Kilchoman matured in bourbon and port casks. The batch comprised 3,325 bottles with an alcohol content of 58.5 per cent.
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9 May 2023: Cognac & Fino Sherry Cask Matured Limited Editions released
On 9 May 2023, the Kilchoman Distillery released two new Limited Editions at once: the first Cognac cask release and the second Fino sherry cask release.
The casks for both releases were selected by Kilchoman’s founder, Anthony Wills, and production director, Robin Bignal, and bottled in March.
For the first Kilchoman Cognac cask maturation produced in a larger batch (previously, there had only been a five-year-old single cask bottling from Kilchoman’s French importer, LMDW), these were 32 Cognac casks from the Tonnellerie Bossuet. The selected casks were at least six years old. The vatting of these 32 casks, diluted to 50 per cent, yielded 15,100 bottles.
Kilchoman Founder Anthony Wills wrote: “The limited-edition cask exploration editions allow us to experiment with our spirit here at Kilchoman. The Cognac casks selected for this 2023 release permit our fruit-driven, citrus spirit style to balance with that of the Cognac oak. There is a delicate balance to be found when working with Cognac casks; keeping the age of this release at a minimum of six years old ensures the flavours from the spirit and the cask are easily detected, neither dominates.”
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The second Fino Sherry Cask Matured Release since 2020 was a vatting comprising 20 Fino sherry casks from the Bodega José y Miguel Martín, from which, as is well known, Kilchoman sources all its sherry casks. The casks were at least five years old at the time of bottling; the yield here was 15,650 bottles, with an alcohol content of 50 % abv.
Anthony Wills wrote: “The Fino Sherry maturation works incredibly well with our classic Kilchoman character. The 2023 release elevates the fragrant green apple, stewed fruits and sweet citrus while allowing for the unmistakeable Kilchoman peat smoke to linger on the palate. Fino is another example of sherry casks working together, not against, our Kilchoman spirit.”
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1 June: 2023: Kilchoman Open Day at Fèis Ìle 2023
The Kilchoman Open Day at Fèis Ìle 2023 was once again a resounding success. In glorious weather, numerous guests visited the distillery and took part in the many events on offer, enjoying live music and a wide range of culinary delights.
Here are some photos from the event, including our own as well as pictures by John Brian, Neil McChrystal, Graham Ward and the Kilchoman Distillery – we would like to thank them all for providing these.
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September: Kilchoman 100% Islay 13th Edition released
Right on schedule in September 2023, the 13th edition of the annual 100% Islay Limited Release was released, a vatting of 44 ex-bourbon casks that had matured for over 8 years in the Kilchoman warehouses. The barley used was the Publican variety, harvested at Rockside Farm in 2012, 2013 and 2014. As is customary with the 100% Islay range, the whisky was bottled at an alcohol content of 50.0 % abv. The yield was 13,000 bottles.
What made the 2023 edition particularly special was that it was matured exclusively in bourbon casks, as was the case with the early 100% Islay releases. The addition of a few sherry casks to the vatting – first introduced in 2018 and standard practice since 2020 – had certainly met with some negative reactions from Kilchoman fans, who continued to prefer a pure bourbon cask maturation. Anthony Wills wrote that for this year’s bottling, he had predominantly selected first-fill ex-bourbon barrels.
The 13th edition was the second 100% Islay Limited Release to consist exclusively of whisky made from Publican barley. The fruitiness of these bottlings is best described as tropical fruit (‘hints of pineapple’) and no longer features the strawberry notes that were so characteristic of the Optic barley variety grown in Kilchoman’s early years.
Kilchoman Founder & MD Anthony Wills wrote: “The 13th Edition is the first release since 2019 where I have opted for solely bourbon barrels. The 44 bourbon barrels that I selected are predominantly fresh casks, this gives the whisky lovely layers of buttery vanilla and caramel flavours which pair beautifully with the citrus sweetness of our spirit.”
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5 October 2023: A bottle of Kilchoman from cask no. 1 was auctioned for 15,000 pounds
At the second edition of the biennial auction series launched in 2021, “The Distillers One of One” – in which whisky distilleries from across Scotland, in collaboration with the renowned auction house Sotheby’s, auction off rare whiskies for a good cause – a bottle of Kilchoman whisky from cask No. 1/2005 achieved a remarkable price of £15,000.
The total proceeds from the auction, amounting to 1.8 million pounds, went primarily to the Youth Action Fund of the Distiller’s Charity, whose aim is to improve the life chances of disadvantaged young people in Scotch whisky-producing communities.
This was the second time Kilchoman had taken part in the Distillers One of One Auction. It was held at the magnificent Hopetoun House, widely regarded as one of Scotland’s finest country houses. For the third time in Kilchoman’s history, a bottle from the very first cask ever bottled by the distillery was auctioned off, offering a unique opportunity to own a remarkable piece of Kilchoman’s history.
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Presented in a bespoke wooden box comprising several layers, which represents the distinctive landscape surrounding the distillery, the etched glass bottle also came with a certificate of authenticity from Kilchoman’s founder, Anthony Wills.
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October: PX Sherry Cask Matured Limited Edition released
In the second week of October 2023, Kilchoman released another limited edition. This was the second PX Sherry Cask Matured Limited Edition in Kilchoman’s history. A first PX Sherry Cask Matured Release had already been released in 2021, but despite its name, it was a combination of PX casks used for the entire maturation and PX finish casks.
For the 2023 release, Anthony Wills and Robin Bignal opted for a pure PX full maturation, selecting no fewer than 61 PX sherry casks aged for at least five years. The yield totalled 23,000 bottles, bottled at an alcohol content of 50.0 % abv.
“The 2023 PX Sherry Cask Matured release is our first limited edition to be fully matured in PX casks. Some might consider five years to be a short maturation, but these PX hogsheads give such a rich and sweet character, shorter maturation is the only option to maintain a good balance of flavour. Here, the citrus sweetness and peat smoke of our spirit balance beautifully with the PX character to create a multi-dimensional whisky, rich and sweet with hints of light citrus sweetness and waves of maritime peat smoke.” Anthony Wills, Kilchoman Founder & MD.
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November: Loch Gruinart, exclusively at Marks & Spencer as part of the new M&S Collection
The major British retail chain Marks & Spencer launched a range of exclusive spirits and liqueurs in early November 2023. The new spirits collection, comprising six spirits and two Irish cream liqueurs, was developed by M&S in collaboration with well-known distilleries such as Warner’s, Glenfarclas, Kilchoman and the renowned cognac house Hine. The selected spirits and liqueurs are sold by Marks & Spencer in their usual original packaging, but are identifiable as Marks & Spencer exclusive products thanks to an M&S label on the bottles.
The spirits on offer include a vodka produced by Royal Mash from extra-large Jersey Royal potatoes, an Old Tom gin from Warner’s Distillery in Northamptonshire, a Bajan rum from one of the Caribbean’s finest rum distilleries, a fine Champagne VSPO cognac from Hine, an Islay malt whisky from the Kilchoman distillery and a ten-year-old Glenfarclas Highland single malt. Two Irish cream liqueurs round off the range.
Kilchoman is represented in the range by the Loch Gruinart. This first exclusive supermarket whisky from the distillery – a vatting predominantly from bourbon casks with a touch of sherry influence from both Oloroso and PX casks – had previously been sold exclusively in French supermarkets. The packaging and label of the new UK-exclusive variant have been given a completely new and very appealing design.
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6 November: Kilchoman 16 yo Limited Release launched
On 6 November 2023, Kilchoman proudly announced the launch of a 16-year-old Limited Release. This was not only the distillery’s first Limited Release with an official age statement, but also its oldest bottling available worldwide to date.
In order to achieve what they described as a “perfectly balanced single malt” – and thus to provide an interim assessment of over 16 years of Kilchoman’s development with a new “benchmark release” – Anthony Wills and Robin Bignal selected 21 casks filled in 2006 and 2007 and vatted them. This comprises exactly 20 bourbon casks and one 2006 Oloroso sherry butt. Bottled at 50% ABV, the run totalled approximately 5,000 bottles.
Kilchoman Founder Anthony Wills wrote: “This is a landmark release for the distillery, the oldest global bottling we have done to date at 16 years of age. I look forward to Kilchoman fans around the world tasting this outstanding whisky and experience the evolving character of our single malt.”
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6 December 2023: 12th Kilchoman Club Release launched
On 6 December 2023, members of the Kilchoman Club were able to purchase the annual exclusive club bottling – limited to one bottle per person – online via the Kilchoman website for £70.75 plus VAT and postage.
Anthony Wills and Robin Bignal, always keen to release a very special bottling for club members, opted this time for a Small Batch release finished in Blanc de Blancs wine casks – the latest in a series of ‘experimental casks’ in 2023 through which Kilchoman has allowed us to share in the maturation and finishing of its distillate in a wide variety of cask types. Since the summer of 2023, a handful of Blanc de Blancs single cask finishes had already been released in Germany, the USA, Canada and Italy. With the 2023 Club release, a somewhat larger circle of Kilchoman enthusiasts was now able to become acquainted with this cask type for the first time.
The whisky was initially matured for just under six years in two ex-Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels, before being decanted into two Blanc de Blancs casks in August and September 2022 respectively, where it was finished for a further 14 months.
Anthony Wills wrote: “The Blanc de Blancs casks have added layers of lemon tart, tropical fruit and aromatic honeysuckle which build on the caramel and vanilla influence of the bourbon barrels and pair beautifully with the natural salty sweetness and peat smoke of the Kilchoman spirit. It’s a shame we didn’t fill more Blanc de Blancs.”
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28 December 2023: Online Christmas Tasting
In 2023, Kilchoman once again hosted an Online Christmas tasting on Thursday 28 December with Anthony and James Wills, which was streamed on Facebook and YouTube.
The tasting packs, which could be purchased for £22.90 plus tax and postage on the Kilchoman website, contained three samples of limited-edition bottlings from 2023 alongside the core range whisky Machir Bay, including the 13th edition of the 100% Islay, the 16 Year Old Release and the 12th edition of the Club Release.
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