Islay whisky lovers, rejoice! The legendary Islay malt distillery, Port Ellen, has finally thrown open its doors this month after a four-decade slumber.

Founded way back in 1825, it played a major part in Islay's whisky scene. Due to a difficult economic climate, the distillery was then shuttered in April 1983 – seemingly for good. Its last casks were laid to rest in nearby warehousing, while the stills and other distilling equipment were dismantled and removed.

In the decades since, however, Port Ellen's whisky began to acquire a mythical status amongst whisky lovers during the early 2000s. Fans and collectors went wild for this malt, vying for its distinctive combination of leather, smoke and citrus. Secondary market prices for these bottlings became astronomical.   

Fast-forward to 2017: Diageo, the owner of Port Ellen, stunned fans with its announcement that Port Ellen would be brought back to life as part of a massive investment Diageo is making in whisky tourism. After years of work, the distillery is finally open again this month!

This isn't just a rebuild. They've got replica "phoenix" stills for that classic Port Ellen flavour, but there's also a whole new set of experimental stills that are connected to a "Ten Part Spirit Safe" and to allow the distillers to take multiple precise cuts, and a bunch of fancy technical gear and even a lab on site to analyse experimental distillate. 

Islay distillery veteran Ali McDonald has been appointed Master Distiller. Ali comes with the pedigree of having worked at several iconic Islay distilleries, including Kilchoman, Caol Ila, and Lagavulin. Aimée Morrison is appointed Master Blender. 

The distillery is also celebrating the grand reopening with a £45,000 release of twin Port Ellen Gemini bottles, made from the existing whisky distilled prior to closure. This is a set of 44-year-old single malts with a vintage of 1978 drawn from three European oak casks. Those with deep pockets will no doubt be scrambling.

The distillery is accepting tour bookings from June onwards, with shorter tours for whisky novices and immersive private tours for seasoned whisky lovers. The distillery will also be open to public for a visit on the first Saturday of every month. Fancy a visit? You can find out more on Diageo's official site Malts.com.

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team