Campbeltown Malts Festival
SINGLE malt whisky lovers from all four corners of the globe will descend on Kintyre later this month for the latest edition of the annual Campbeltown Malts Festival.
Starting from a humble one-day event at the town’s Glengyle Distillery back in 2009, the Malts Festival has grown hugely in size and style and now includes all three local whisky distilleries Springbank, Glengyle and Glen Scotia - as well as Beinn An Tuirc Distillery at Torrisdale and Scotland’s oldest independent bottler of whisky and other spirits William Cadenhead Ltd.
The four day-long event takes place from Tuesday May 22nd - Friday May 25th and is jam-packed with whisky master-classes, tasting sessions, distillery tours and whisky and spirits-themed dinners, not to mention a free to enter ceilidh at Springbank on Thursday May 24th.
The benefits of the event are felt throughout Kintyre as accommodation, restaurants and bars will all be packed for the duration, contributing hundreds of thousands of pounds to the local economy.
Events kick-off at 1pm on Tuesday, when Beinn An Tuirc holds its Kintyre Gin Open Day, marking its first participation in the event since it’s hugely-popular gin hit the market.
Distillery tours, tastings and a pop-up gin bar will be amongst the highlights, whilst visitors will also be able to chat to distiller Su Black and directors Niall and Emma Macalister Hall. With events planned to fit in with the Carradale bus timetable, it’s sure to be a perfect way to start the week.
Later that evening Glen Scotia Distillery will be hosting their 2018 whisky dinner, which begins with a drink at Campbeltown Picture House before moving on to the Ardshiel Hotel and its multi-award winning whisky bar.
Whisky celebrity Charles MacLean will be on hand to chat and entertain guests, while over at Springbank Distillery Campbeltown-based independent bottler William Cadenhead Ltd are hosting an informal tasting for their Cadenhead Club members.
Day two sees the focus shift firmly onto whisky. Glen Scotia are hosting free distillery tours and the first of a series of dunnage warehouse tastings with distillery manager Iain McAllister, a rare treat to try some great drams with the man in charge of producing them.
Springbank will be hosting a tasting for their Springbank Society members the same day, followed by a sold-out Malt Barns Whisky Dinner that evening.
Four local restaurants - the Ardshiel, Craigard, Food for Thought and Harbourview Grille are also hosting whisky dinners on Wednesday, each of which is bookable through the individual restaurants, space permitting of course.
On Thursday the Springbank Open Day includes tastings and masterclasses all day and a free to enter ceilidh in the evening featuring tunes from popular local band Rhuvaal and Tracy, Josh and David.
Highlights include warehouse tastings with the production team and an interesting introduction to J&A Mitchell Ltd tasting in the early evening.
Cairndow-based brewery Fyne Ales will be on hand throughout the day to provide extra refreshment for those who fancy a beer to go with their whisky. Glen Scotia will also be continuing their tours and dunnage warehouse tastings.
Friday brings the event to a conclusion but it certainly won’t be a day of rest. Glengyle Distillery will host most of the action, with a pop up Kilkerran Cocktail Bar sure to provide an interesting twist on the whiskies available.
Tastings and drams will be the order of the day