Scotland's whisky isle — eight distilleries, wild goose migrations, and the water of life
Islay (pronounced 'EYE-lah') is a small Hebridean island off Scotland's southwest coast that punches so far above its weight in whisky production it has become a global pilgrimage site for scotch lovers. Eight active distilleries produce the world's most heavily peated single malts — Ardbeg, Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Bruichladdich, Bowmore, Bunnahabhain, Caol Ila, and Kilchoman — using peat cut from the island's bogs to smoke the malting barley. The island is also one of the best places in Europe to see barnacle geese (over 40,000 winter here) and white-tailed eagles.
Islay was the seat of the Lords of the Isles — the MacDonald clan who ruled the Scottish Western Isles as an independent polity from the 13th to 15th centuries, wielding power rivalling that of the Scottish kings. The ruins of Finlaggan castle on a lake in the island's interior were the capital of this Gaelic kingdom. Distillation on the island is documented from at least 1742, though illicit whisky was made much earlier using the island's abundant peat and pure water from granite springs.