Bunnahabhain Distillery Information
Founded in 1881 by William Robertson (from the Glasgow-based Robertson & Baxter blending house) and brothers James and William Greenless (from Islay Distillers Company) the Bunnahabhain (which is Gaelic for “Foot of the river”, and is pronounced as “Bun-a-hav-in”) distillery is situated on the mouth of the Margadale river. It overlooks the Sound of Islay; a narrow channel between the Isle of Islay and the Isle of Jura. The distillery was built in a rather remote location, leading to its workers establishing a village with the name of the distillery, though it did require to have a mile-long road built to connect the distillery to Islay’s main road. The location, though remote, was chosen due to a nearby loch (Staoinsha) able to provide ample amounts of peaty water, and a natural harbor close-by that made the location very accessible by boat. Its location makes Bunnahabhain the most Northern Islay distillery. The coast near the distillery holds the shipwreck of the “Wyre Majestic”, a trawler that ran aground on the rocks at Rubha a’Mhail on October 18, 1974. The treacherous coast around the Sound of Islay holds the wreck of some 50 or so other ships as well. Whisky production commenced in 1883, and in 1887, the distillery became one of the founding members of the Highland Distillers Company Ltd.The late 1920s/early 1930s crisis caused the distillery to be closed between 1930 and 1937. When reopening, the whisky from Bunnahabhain was primarily used for the “Black Bottle” blend, containing some whisky from every distillery on Islay) from Highland Distillers Co. As demand for the blend increased, in 1963, the number of stills increased from 2 to 4 in order to keep up with the demand. The first release of Bunnahabhain Single Malt wasn’t until the 1970s, and even then the amount released was very limited. Between 1982 and 1984, the distillery was forced to close its doors once more, and in 1999 the Edrington Group (who also own The Macallan and Highland Park), acquired Highland Distillers, and with it Bunnahabhain. The distillery was essentially mothballed by Edrington Group as they wanted to focus on their core brands (which, apart from the two single malt brands named earlier, also include The Famous Grouse and Cutty Shark), as it was only opened for production a few week a year in order to produce sufficient whisky for their blends. In 2003, Burnt Stewart (who also owned Deanston and Tobermory) distillers purchased Bunnahabhain and the Black Bottle brand name from the Edrington Group. Interestingly enough, the Edrington Group is still the main customer of the distillery. Burn Stewart merged into the South African drinks group Distell in 2014. When Heineken acquired a majority stake in Distell in 2022–23, Bunnahabhain’s Scotch operations were spun out under a new holding structure, CVH Spirits (Capevin Holdings), with Italy’s Campari Group taking a minority stake in 2024.Bunnahabhain Whiskies
All Bunnahabhain whisky is made with lighty peated barley, rather than the traditional heavy peating that’s typical for Islay whisky (Another exception to this is Bruichladdich). The whisky therefore is marketed as “The gentle taste of Islay”. In 2010 the distillery made the choice to switch from chill-filtered to non-chill filtered whisky in order to preserve as much of the taste as possible. However, this meant that when cold water was added, there was a potential for flaking to occur. They discovered that by increasing the ABV, this could be countered. Ever since, all Bunnahabhain whisky is non-chill filtered, and bottled at 46.3% ABV (where it was 40% before). Its core range:- 12 Year Old
- Stiùireadair; a no-age-statement sherried release
- 18 Year Old
- Toiteach A Dhà; peated, distilled from barley at 35–40 ppm phenols
- 25 Year Old
- 40 Year Old; limited to 750 bottles
- Cruach-Mhòna; Like Toiteach, this whisky is more-than-lightly peated. Travel Retail exclusive.
- Eirigh Na Greine; This limited edition release contains a significant amount of whiskies of various ages that matured in ex-red wine casks. Travel Retail exclusive.
Distillery info:
Detail |
Information |
|---|---|
| Name | Bunnahabhain |
| Region | Islay |
| Country | Scotland |
| Logo |  |
| Status | Active |
| Founded | 1881 |
| Water source | Margadale River |
| Malting floor | No |
| Owned by | CVH Spirits (Capevin Holdings) |
| Address | Bunnahabhain Distillery Port Askaig Isle of Islay, PA46 7RP Scotland +44 (0) 1496 840646 |
| Visitor centre | No |
| Website | https://www.bunnahabhain.com/ |
| https://twitter.com/bunnahabhain | |
| https://www.facebook.com/Bunnahabhaindistillery | |
| Community | The Coterie |
| Map |
Distillery Setup:
Component |
Capacity |
Quantity |
|---|---|---|
| Mash tun | 15 tonnes | 1 (Stainless steel) |
| Washback | 66,500 litres | 6 (Oregon pine) |
| Wash still | 35,356 litres | 2 |
| Spirit Still | 15,546 litres | 2 |
| Expected yearly output in LPA (Litres of pure alcohol) | 2,500,000 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Bunnahabhain is Gaelic for “Foot of the river”, pronounced “Bun-a-hav-in”.
Bunnahabhain was founded in 1881 by William Robertson of the Glasgow-based Robertson & Baxter blending house, along with brothers James and William Greenless of the Islay Distillers Company. The remote site at the mouth of the Margadale River was chosen for the nearby Loch Staoinsha, which supplied ample peaty water, and a natural harbour that made the location accessible by boat despite requiring a mile-long road to connect it to Islay’s main road. Workers ended up founding a village named after the distillery itself.
Yes. Its location overlooking the Sound of Islay, the narrow channel between Islay and the Isle of Jura, makes Bunnahabhain the most northern distillery on the island. The treacherous coast nearby holds around 50 shipwrecks, including the trawler Wyre Majestic, which ran aground at Rubha a’Mhail in October 1974.
Bunnahabhain became a founding member of the Highland Distillers Company Ltd in 1887. After reopening from a closure during the crisis of the late 1920s and early 1930s, its whisky was used mainly for Highland Distillers’ Black Bottle blend, which contained whisky from every distillery on Islay. As demand grew, the number of stills was increased from two to four in 1963.
The Edrington Group, owners of The Macallan and Highland Park, acquired Highland Distillers, and with it Bunnahabhain, in 1999. Edrington largely mothballed the distillery to focus on its core brands, running it only a few weeks a year to supply its blends. In 2003, Burn Stewart, owners of Deanston and Tobermory, bought Bunnahabhain and the Black Bottle brand from Edrington, though Edrington remains the distillery’s main customer to this day.
Burn Stewart merged into the South African drinks group Distell in 2014. When Heineken acquired a majority stake in Distell in 2022-23, Bunnahabhain’s Scotch operations were spun out under a new holding structure, CVH Spirits (Capevin Holdings), with Italy’s Campari Group taking a minority stake in 2024.
All Bunnahabhain whisky is made with lightly peated barley, rather than the heavy peating typical of Islay whisky. The only other Islay distillery to take a similar approach is Bruichladdich. This lighter style is the basis for Bunnahabhain’s “gentle taste of Islay” marketing.
In 2010, Bunnahabhain switched from chill-filtered to non-chill filtered whisky to preserve more of its flavour. Non-chill filtered whisky can flake when cold water is added, so the distillery raised the ABV from 40% to 46.3% to prevent this, and all Bunnahabhain whisky has been bottled that way ever since.
The core range includes a 12 Year Old, Stiuireadair (a no-age-statement sherried release), an 18 Year Old, Toiteach A Dha (a peated expression distilled from barley at 35-40 ppm phenols), a 25 Year Old, and a 40 Year Old limited to 750 bottles.
No, Bunnahabhain does not have a visitor centre.