Caol Ila Distillery

Pronounced ‘cull-eela’, the distillery is situated on the North Eastern shores of Islay with magnificent views across the Sound of Islay to the spectacular Paps of Jura. Join us for a tour and watch the distillers at work, tending to the 6 copper stills.
In 1846, Glasgow distillery owner Hector Henderson picked a little bay on the Sound of Islay for his distillery site. He named it for the sound itself, using the Gaelic Caol Ila, and it was across this sound the little puffer ships made their round trips to the mainland – slowly helping to establish the distillery as the biggest on Islay.

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