A week in paradise

The Islay Festival is the highlight of the Scotch whisky year. Martine Nouet looks ahead to this year's activities

The Islay and Jura Festival is not only a true highlight in the whisky lover's calendar, but it is a particularly generous affair time-wise. It stretches over a week and each distillery has its own prominent, though not exclusive, day.

Here are some of the highlights:

Let's arouse our senses

All distilleries host extensive tours, some of them at midnight for spooky fun (Ardbeg and Laphroaig). They all have special tasting sessions.

Expect great knowledge but also good stories and fun from all the experts who will take you on the nosing path.

Let's keep on learning

• Sunday 30th May: join in the whisky culture olympics at Bruichladdich: a whisky game competition with teams of three.
Neil Wilson's whisky map and the presentation of a new DVD will also take place at this time.

• Monday 31st May: Tour the maltings. Healthy too: countless stairs to climb up and down.

• Tuesday 1st June: Demonstration of the traditional art of dunnage stowing by the warehousemen at Laphroaig.

• Wednesday 3rd June: Whisky bard Robin Laing sings, tells stories and reads poems from his great bedside book, The Whisky Muse. He will entertain visitors in the Bowmore vaults.

Let's keep fit

What about a healthy walk to the source of whisky ?

• Saturday 29th May: Lagavulin manager Donald Renwick takes you up the hill to Solum Lochs.

• Thursday 3rd June: Caol Ila manager Billy Stitchell leads a three hour walk to the distillery's water source. The reward? A tasting (not only of the w...

• By : Martine Nouet
• In : Events
• Issue : 39
• Page : 36
• Words : 712