Whisky production begins at Lagg Distillery – Scotch Whisky News
Whisky production begins at Lagg Distillery
The latest major milestone in the building of the Isle of Arran Distillers’ new Lagg Distillery has been reached, with distillation now underway.
The first middle cut of spirit was recorded on Tuesday 19th March at 14.35. Following this, the commissioning phase has now been completed and Cask Number One was filled on Wednesday 10th April.
Cask Number One, a Sherry Butt exclusively reserved for members of the Lagg Cask Society, has been filled with a heavily-peated (50ppm) spirit, at a filling strength of 63.5%.
This spirit is expected to mature into the rich, earthy, smoky, Lagg Single Malt which will be very different in character to what the distillers currently produce at their original distillery in Lochranza.
Master Distiller, James MacTaggart, said: “It’s incredibly exciting to be taking the very first steps in producing what will eventually be a magnificent Lagg whisky and something truly unique to anything we’ve produced previously.”
Whisky lovers can be part of the exciting story of the Lagg Distillery, by purchasing one of the first casks to be filled at the distillery, and becoming members of the Lagg Cask Society. For more information, visit www.laggwhisky.com
Over half of the casks reserved for this offering have now been sold, and with distillation underway, it is expected that each of the 700 casks for the society will soon be filled.
In terms of site construction, the distillery & visitor centre is now entering its final stages and is on track to open in early summer of this year. Work to the outer structure is now complete, and inside many of the elements of internal design are starting to come together.
It is expected that once open, the Lagg Distillery and Visitor Centre will increase total visitor numbers at both sites to over 200,000 by 2020.
Accolades for Isle of Arran Distillery include Winner for:
Best New Exporter (2004), Queen’s Award for International Trade (2005), Scottish Distiller of the Year (2007) and Scottish Drinks Producer of the Year (2007) Scottish Field Visitor Experience of the Year 2014 & 2015
Drinks Business Best Contribution to Wine and Spirits Tourism (2017)
Best Brewery/Distillery Tour – Scottish Outdoor Leisure Awards (2017)
Best Visitor Experience – Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions (2018)
Product Awards include:
Arran 10 year-old: Gold Medal ‘Best Single Malt 12 Years & Under, World Whiskies Awards (2019) San Francisco World Spirits Competition Double Gold Medal (2018). International Wine & Spirits Competition Gold Medal (2018). Category Winner and Gold Medal ‘Best Scotch Under 12 Years’ Islands Non-Islay at the World Whiskies Awards (2018). International Spirits Challenge Silver Medal (2018). Ultimate Spirits Challenge 91 points (2018). Ultimate Spirits Challenge Cocktail Commendation for the Rob Roy (2018). Double Gold Medal China Wine & Spirits Best Value Awards (2014)
Arran 18 year-old: Gold Medal ‘Best Single Malt 13 – 20 Years, World Whiskies Awards (2019) International Wine & Spirits Competition Gold Medal (2018) Category Winner & Gold Medal ‘Best Scotch 13-20 Years – Islands (Non- Islay) World Whiskies Awards (2018). International Spirits Challenge Silver Medal (2018) Scottish Field Whisky Challenge – Gold Award for Best Whisky £50-100 (2018)
Quarter Cask ‘The Bothy’: Best Scotch Island Single Malt, World Whiskies Awards (2019) Category Winner & Gold Medal ‘No Age Statement Single Malt’ for The Bothy Batch 3 World Whiskies Awards (2018). International Wine & Spirits Competition Silver Outstanding Medal (2018). International Spirits Challenge Silver Medal (2018)
Arran Lochranza Reserve: International Wine & Spirits Competition Silver Outstanding Medal (2018), International Spirits Challenge Silver Medal (2018)