Islay Caol Ila Malt Whisky Distillery. Pictures and distillery tour info

Caol Ila Distillery

Caol Ila Distillery Caol Ila Tours, Opening Hours and Contact

16 February to March
Monday to Friday 09:00 - 12:00. Tour 10:00

April - October
Monday to Friday 09:15 - 16:15. Tours 09:30 10:45, 13:45 & 15:15

November
09:00 - 12:00. Tour 10:00

December
By appointment only

Also open: Saturdays April to October 09:00 - 12:00. Tour 10:00. Easter Sunday 1pm - 4pm. Tour 2pm. Please book to avoid disappointment. Occasionally we need to restrict or modify tour times for operational reasons. Children under eight are welcome but not admitted into production areas. Tour cost £5 including complimentary whisky glass.

Current owner: Diageo
Distillery Manager: Billy Stitchell
caolila.distillery@diageo.com
www.discovering-distilleries.com
+ 44 (0) 1496 302769
+ 44 (0) 1496 302763

Caol Ila History and Distillery Information
Caol Ila (Gaelic for “Sound of Islay” and pronounced col eela) was founded in 1846 by Hector Henderson. The distillery did not fare well, and changed hands in 1854 when Norman Buchanan, owner of the Isle of Jura Distillery, took over.

In 1863 the business was acquired by Bulloch Lade & Co, of Glasgow, traders in whisky stocks. By the 1880s over 147,000 gallons of whisky were produced there each year.

In 1920 Bulloch Lade went into voluntary liquidation, and a consortium of businessmen formed the Caol Ila Distillery Company Ltd. In 1927 the Distillers Company Limited acquired a controlling interest in Caol Ila, and in 1930 Scottish Malt Distillers Ltd obtained ownership of all the shares. The company eventually became part of Diageo.

The distillery closed during World War II, from 1941–1945, because of wartime restrictions on the supply of barley to distillers. From then, production continued until 1972, when the entire structure of the distillery was demolished. A larger distillery was built in the same original architectural style, and production resumed in 1974.

Bottlings
Here are the most important bottlings of Caol Ila:

Caol Ila 12yo, 43% ABV.

Caol Ila 18yo, 43% ABV.

Caol Ila Cask Strength at 55% ABV.

Caol Ila 15yo, Flora and Fauna, 43% ABV. Hard to find.

Caol Ila 1981, Bottled 1997, Cask Strength Limited Bottling, 63.8 ABV.

Caol Ila 20yo, bottled 1996, 57.86 ABV, 150th Anniversary Edition.

Caol Ila Rare Malts varying from 20, 21 and 23 yo but hard to find.

Lady of the Isles - Personalised Whisky Tours over the Island

Books from Amazon

Andrew Jefford - Peat Smoke and Spirit

Those who discover malt whisky quickly learn that the malts made on the Isle of Islay are some of the wildest and most characterful in the malt-whisky spectrum.