Islay is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides, roughly 620 square kilometres of low-lying land exposed to Atlantic weather systems. Its geography explains its distilling history more directly than any other factor: fertile ground for barley, abundant fresh water, deep peat deposits and, crucially, sheltered anchorages from which cargo could be shipped without passing a mainland customs post.
The island was the seat of the Lords of the Isles from the twelfth century, and distillation is thought to have arrived from Ireland across the twenty-five kilometres of the North Channel. The ruins of Dunyvaig Castle, the naval stronghold of that lordship, stand immediately adjacent to the Lagavulin distillery site.
Peat as Fuel
Islay has little native woodland. Peat, accumulated over thousands of years in the island's bogs, was the only abundant fuel, and it was used to dry malted barley. The phenolic compounds released in the smoke are absorbed by the grain, and the heavily peated character of Islay production is therefore a direct consequence of the island's ecology rather than a stylistic preference.
The character of Islay production is a consequence of an island without trees.
The Illicit Period
Excise records of the eighteenth century document extensive unlicensed distillation across Islay. Remote coastal inlets allowed cargo to be loaded away from official observation, and enforcement from the mainland was infrequent. Several sites later registered as legal distilleries, Lagavulin among them, were documented as locations of illicit activity for a century or more before registration.
Legalisation and Founding
The distilleries of Islay were registered across a period of roughly seven decades. Bowmore is recorded from 1779, Ardbeg from 1815, Laphroaig from 1815, Lagavulin from 1816, Caol Ila from 1846 and Bruichladdich from 1881. Bunnahabhain followed in 1881, built with worker housing and a pier because of the remoteness of its northern site.
Alfred Barnard visited the island during his 1885 survey and recorded the working conditions, equipment and output of each operation, providing the most complete contemporary account of Islay production in the Victorian period.
Contraction and Return
The twentieth century brought closures. Port Ellen ceased production in 1983 during the industry-wide surplus, and Bruichladdich was mothballed from 1994. The island's fortunes reversed with the growth of interest in single malt: Bruichladdich reopened in 2001, Kilchoman was founded in 2005 as the island's first new distillery in over a century, and Port Ellen was returned to production in 2024.
A working distillery on Islay is also a record of the island's population, its transport and its economy.
Several Islay sites retain traditional floor maltings, and the island's distilleries remain among the principal employers of a resident population of roughly three thousand people. The industrial heritage and the settlement history of Islay cannot be separated.