Port Ellen distillery

I mean, obviously, the reason why distilleries like Hanyu and Kurosawa are sought after is because they're closed.

And they closed much like Port Ellen and Brawra did at around about the same time.

And there's a reason that these distilleries closed.

Like there was a massive downturn and there was overproduction and all this sort of stuff.

a boys a boys jolly which is fine just

relax and enjoy it man I'd like to go back because obviously so much has changed in the last four years distillery wise you know I think when we were there Port Ellen wasn't up and running yet or it was the bones of it

there's two and a half new distilleries since we were there yep Port Ellen is new Laggan Bay is new and

Port Nitroon

Port Atruan is, well, still a work in progress, but.

We used to go across there every, for a wee week.

And then in the, do you remember when things lifted in the pandemic in 2021? It was a kind of lifting of sanctions.

We managed to go across to Islay and we rented a cottage across the bay at Port Ellen.

Well, [laughs] it's interesting if you go back just 30 years.

Peated whiskey was not at all in favor, and so we had a situation where some of the most famous distilleries on the Scottish islands, like Port Ellen on Islay or Ardbeg on Islay, uh, were being closed down.

There was really no demand for that whiskey at all.

Over the last two or three decades, fashions change, and so some people began to acquire the taste for these heavily peated whiskeys.

It's the newest and kind of grandest spirits done, but...

he has very graciously kind of provided Whiskey Fest with these whiskeys for this lounge for our all-access guests, like High Peaky 30-year-olds, Double Eagle, very rare, Glen Farkless 35, a Port Ellen, and more, yeah, really special pours.

So that's kind of a cool little add there.

Yeah, I think it's like, I mean, you look at the price for the all-access package, it's kind of, you know, if you went to a bar and had a couple of pours, you'd hit that at some of these whiskeys.

Um, you know,

I've still, as a Pete head, I've still never gotten to try Port Ellen, and I'm bummed about that.

Someday.

Someday, yeah.

You know what? Port Ellen is really good, but I would argue there's something to be, you know, kind of like how, you know, how should I say this? I, Port Ellen is a very dynamic spirit in that, like, as it ages, it goes through serious shifts.

So like once it comes out of 25 years, 25, 26 years of age, then it, you kind of lose almost all the Pete, at least the ones that are, and, or a fair amount of it.

And it just be, it becomes this, uh, you know, focus on minerality.