Kilchoman Distillery Show Notes
Notes and Reviews for Whiskey Ring Podcast Episode 187: Kilchoman Distillery with James WIlls
Geese, Barley, and Peat At The First New Islay Distillery in 124 Years
In this brand new episode of the Whiskey Ring Podcast, I had the pleasure of speaking with James Wills, son of founder Anthony Wills and a worldwide face of Kilchoman Distillery on Islay. This episode marks a significant milestone as it is my first interview with an Islay distillery (I was surprised too!), and I was excited to delve into the unique aspects of Kilchoman and the challenges of distilling on this iconic island.
We start off where any good whisky podcast starts: with geese. Yes, geese. They're kind of a big deal there. I'm not known for going with the grain (yeah I said it) so why not there. Kilchoman has a lot more going for it, though, as it enters its 20th year in 2025. As the first new Islay distillery in 124 years, Kilchoman needed to be different. They couldn't just be peaty, they had to be unique - and thus they became the first farm-to-glass distillery on the island.
We chat about all the nerdy stuff you'd expect, like barley experimentation and yeast and fermentation, plus a dive into how their bourbon barrel sourcing and full-term maturation (note: not finishing!) work. There's also plenty to explore about the "whys" and inflection points in the distillery's two-decade evolution.
I've been wanting to have Kilchoman on for two years, and I'm thrilled to finally make that happen for the podcast and for you, the listeners and supporters.
Thank you to James for entering the Whiskey Ring!
Kilchoman Distillery
Whiskeyinmyweddingring.com is proudly sponsored by BAXUS, the global marketplace for the world’s most collectible spirits
Note: My notes for these tastings are a bit….informal for me. I had to take them quickly - if you’ve ever attended a Drammer’s event with more than a couple of bottles to taste, you know it goes faster than you can keep up!
Feis Ile 2024 Kilchoman Open Day Bottling - UNPEATED!: Specs
This was a bit of a shocker — their fest release in 2024 was unpeated — and was one of the favorite festival drams this year. Aged for 12 years, bourbon matured. 100% Islay, a vatting of 2 fresh ex-bourbon barrels, distilled in 2011. Why unpeated? It may have something to do with James and his brother accidentally burning down the malt barn because they’d left it to go watch a rugby match, ahem. That’s covered in the interview.
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 106 (53% ABV)
Age: 12 Years Old
Location: Scotland
Feis Ile 2024 Kilchoman Open Day Bottling Price: N/A
Feis Ile 2024 Kilchoman Open Day Bottling: Tasting Notes
Eye: Pale gold, medium rims running off quickly.
Nose: Unpeated, but still has some peat to it in the way Bruichladdich’s classic laddie does. Gentle and a delightful start on the nose. Classic lemon notes of barley, lemon meringue pie and zest rather than punchy acidity. I still get something close to a 10-15ppm peat level despite it being “unpeated”
Palate: Fruity, fresh apples and orchard fruit, settles on the mid-tongue and moves forward from there. The smoke is still a mild level, burning orchard fruit in a smoker, some meaty notes despite not having the sherry. Meyer lemons, more punchy acidity on the palate, floral, fragrant citrus. Briny, fresh mussels and seaweed. Mouthfeel is medium-heavy, a clove-like spice feeling but not flavor, fruitiness outpaces the smoke but doesn’t diminish it. Lightly coating.
Finish: Briny and smoky like a younger Caol Ila, maybe more briny than that even - the salt does a wonderful job of elevating the rest of the flavors. Long, long finish, sooty peat lands and stays on the back of the tongue.
Overall: I know this is almost impossible to find (hence the N/A for pricing) but this was a truly fun experience, starting off with an unpeated edition of a distillery known for peat levels between 20-50 ppm.
Final Rating: 7.3
Kilchoman Distillery Exclusive White Port Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release): Specs
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 113.8 (56.9% ABV)
Age: 8 Years Old
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman Distillery Exclusive White Port Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release) Price: N/A
Kilchoman Distillery Exclusive White Port Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release): Tasting Notes
Eye: Amber maple syrup.
Nose: Clear port nose, even for 10 months finished. Icing sugar with a lemon drizzle. Sugar cookie dusted with crunchy brown sugar.
Palate: Ginger-molasses cookies, proof hit on the tip of my tongue with white and pink peppercorns. Warming and cooling at the same time. Candied ginger, very mild peat. Brown sugar verging on turbinado or muscovado.
Finish: Minty finish yet again brings a bright, fresh cooling sensation at the close. Less sweet than these notes would reflect on paper.
Final Rating: NR
Distillery Exclusive Handfill Marsala Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release): Specs
Hand-filled at the 2024 Feis Ile by Charlie Prince of Drammers.
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 113.2 (56.6% ABV)
Age: 7 Years Old
Location: Scotland
Distillery Exclusive Handfill Marsala Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release) Price: N/A
Distillery Exclusive Handfill Marsala Single Cask (Feis 2024 Release): Tasting Notes
Eye: Reddish gold in the glass. Thin arcing rims with thin legs and small droplets.
Nose: Dark red fruits, fruit leather, leather shop. Proof more apparent than in previous pours. Alcohol-soaked fruits, a red wine charoset. Peat takes a few minutes of air but then roars forward.
Palate: Sweet red wine, black pepper kick in the back of the throat. Rounded, chocolaty (semisweet) Chocolate covered fruits a la Brookstone, dark corn syrup and reducing red wine sauce. Almost-burnt sourdough pretzel crusts with coarse salt. The salt really brings out the chocolate notes. Earthy, coating throughout.
Finish: Finish is shorter than expected, still around medium length.
Final Rating: NR
Photo Credit: Travis Williams
Kilchoman 13YO Ex-Bourbon Cask #319/2010: Specs
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 114 (57% ABV)
Age: 13 Years Old
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman 13 YO Ex-Bourbon Cask #319/2010 Price: N/A
Kilchoman 13YO Ex-Bourbon Cask #319/2010: Tasting Notes
Eye: 14k gold.
Nose: Parmigiana cheese on the nose…in the best way? I can’t describe it any other way. Funky in a nice way. Proof singes the nostrils. Sharp preserved lemon note. Barely any peat that I can detect on the nose.
Palate and Finish: Same note goes through the palate, yet it still tastes like whisky. Such an odd sensation! Funky and savory, maritime, like a grana padano or a ricotta salata. Vanilla pudding packets, patee sucree. Full fat European butter with lots of rye spice and dark, amber ale malt notes.
Final Rating: NR
Kilchoman 100% Islay 13th Edition (2023): Specs
This is one of the most sought-after of the Kilchoman range — their annual limited edition 100% Islay series.
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley from Islay
Proof: 100 (50% ABV)
Age: 8+ Years Old
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman 100% Islay 13th Edition (2023) Price: $111.99
Kilchoman 100% Islay 13th Edition (2023): Tasting Notes
Eye: Slightly green hay color. Thin rims, thin legs and small teardrops falling.
Nose: Lighter peat on the nose than #1, just starting caramel with brighter lemon, too. Fragrant, lemon verbena, preserved lemons, too. Briny on the nose just a touch with sea-based phenols coming through.
Palate: Piquant off the bat with a flash of peat before the fruit takes over, more pears and grilled fruit. Maltier than typical Kilchoman, settles on the mid-to-front again with smoke more so in the back, like a Penicillin cocktail. Quite coating in flavor less so in feeling. Turns creamier on the chew, medium-to-filling, less briny than the nose.
Finish: Finish is smoked stone and orchard fruits that aren’t quite ripe yet. Long and coating again.
Final Rating: 7.4
Kilchoman Single Cask Blanc de Blancs Finish: Specs
Impex Cask Evolution 02/2023
Cask #1108/2016
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 112.4 (56.2% ABV)
Age: 6+ Years Old (Filled Nov. 26, 2016, Bottled July 10, 2023)
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman Single Cask Blanc de Blancs Finish Price: $136.99
Kilchoman Single Cask Blanc de Blancs Finish: Tasting Notes
Eye: 14k gold.
Nose: Fresh, tart citrus acidity, sugared citrus slices. Almost no peat on the nose, hints of sauternes syrupy/vinous character. Oaked chardonnay.
Palate: Stays sweet and fruity, less citrus and more stone fruit on the palate, especially peach nectar and blood orange. Warms and tingles the tongue from back to front and all around the sides, the most textured one yet (6th pour). Peat stays in the background and is more like a far-away bonfire of fruit wood. Hints of…spearmint? Something minty.
Finish: Peat emerges more on the swallow and in the back of the throat, more a background player on this pour. Medium-long and tingling finish that lacquers. Hints of salinity, too, that only open up very late.
Final Rating: NR
Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured (2023 Ed.): Specs
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 100 (50% ABV)
Age: 6+ Years Old
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured (2023 Ed.) Price: $119.99
Kilchoman Cognac Cask Matured (2023 Ed.): Tasting Notes
Eye: Pale gold. Medium rims, consistent thin legs around the rims fall to teardrops.
Nose: Much sweeter nose, golden raisins rise above the delicate peat smoke notes, some tart fruit reminiscent of a warhead candy. Watermelon rinds, light salinity.
Palate: Toffee, tropical fruits, light not bash-over-the-head sweetness. Apricots and fruit salad in syrup. The peat is much milder in this pour, the Heath bar and cask astringency giving lovely semisweet chocolate-covered oranges. White pepper on the mouthfeel for a savory punch.
Finish: Finish is medium length and more coating, drying too.
Final Rating: 6.9
Kilchoman Fino Sherry Cask: Specs
From the company: The Fino Sherry Matured is a limited edition and our first global release of this cask type. The whisky has spent its full maturation in fino casks previously used by Bodega Miguel Martin in Spain, 11 fresh butts and 1 refill butt.
This release follows on from other limited-edition expressions using experimental cask maturations from Kilchoman, full term maturations in port, madeira, sauternes, red wine and STR cask types, amongst others. This particular release is limited to just 10,500 bottles worldwide (46% abv).
Our core range of whiskies include oloroso sherry in their maturation, a medium-dry style of sherry which gives our whiskies a range of cooked and dried fruit influence. Fino differs from this by being a drier, more saline type of sherry which gives Kilchoman whisky layers of fragrant green apple, balancing beautifully with the citrus sweetness, cooked fruits and maritime peat smoke of our spirit.
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 92 (46% ABV)
Age: 6+ Years Old
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman Fino Sherry Cask Price: $119.99
Kilchoman Fino Sherry Cask: Tasting Notes
Eye: 14k gold.
Nose: First one for the tasting that the peat hits after the cask, vegetal sweetness like a strong white wine. Not much proof on the nose, rounded creamy and light vanilla notes, walking through an herb garden.
Palate: Palate is much less peaty, feels darker like a white port or white pineau des Charentes. Minerality like that dry white wine again, veering on the edge of briny but more generally saline. Hits the corners of my mouth in a way the first two didn’t, still pools in the mid-tongue and rolls forward but more diffuse and lighter. Savory enough to remind me of miso.
Finish: Finish is medium length, coating evenly in flavor and feeling, astringency grows but stays in check. Sweet peat continues to build on the nose with air.
Final Rating: 7.3
Kilchoman “Fresh Bourbon” Single Cask, Cask #292/2018: Specs
Notes courtesy of Charlie Prince, Drammers: This is an increasingly rare chance to try a young Kilchoman single cask at cask strength. When Kilchoman first started releasing single casks, it shocked the whisky community with how good they were. Now that they have older stocks, you don’t often come across something like this single cask — which was aged a few months short of 4 years. The fruit notes on this whisky are stunning. This was originally selected for Cask Chasers, a well respected group which has since disbanded.
Classification: Single Malt Scotch Whiskey
Producer: Kilchoman Distillery
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Proof: 122 (61% ABV)
Age: 3+ Years Old (Filled Apr. 8, 2018, Bottled Jan 10, 2022)
Location: Scotland
Kilchoman “Fresh Bourbon” Single Cask, Cask #292/2018 Price: $126.99
Kilchoman “Fresh Bourbon” Single Cask, Cask #292/2018: Tasting Notes
Eye: Hay bales in a glass.
Nose: Bright acidity, not specifically any one citrus fruit, light vegetation not at all fermented or dark. Mild proof up the nose, an odd…maybe parmigiana rind note, lighter peat than I expected from a younger Kilchoman.
Palate: Creamy and custardy, lemon custard and zest shaved on top of a lemon meringue pie infused with peat smoke. Pastry crust, too, taken a little too far and turning. Red spice drops, a brash cinnamon note that flashes now and then as you chew. Rounded mouthfeel is vinous bordering on syrupy, the peppercorn keeping it lighter than a true syrup and coating the whole tongue.
Finish: Finish is medium length, the peat remaining more vegetal and sharply maritime, extending even to my lips from the inside.
Final Rating: 7.4
10 | Unsurpassable | Nothing Else Comes Close
9 | Incredible | Extraordinary
8 | Excellent | Exceptional
7 | Great | Well above average
6 | Very Good | Better than average
5 | Good | Good, solid, ordinary
4 | Has promise but needs work
1-3 | Let’s have a conversation
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All opinions and reviews are of the author and are not subject to review prior to publication.
