About this SPIRIT
Isle of Raasay Distillery
The Isle of Raasay Distillery is located on the eponymous island in the Inner Hebrides – a rugged, desolate terrain that has historically been home to illicit distilling. It was established in 2014 by Bill Dobbie and Alaisdar Day.
Since then, the team have been passionate about crafting artisanal whiskies in the style of a true Hebridean single malt. They have sought to capture flavours that were once commonplace in whiskies:
“When people talk about fruit in whisky, they tend to talk about apples, bananas, pears – those sorts of flavours,” explains Alaisdar Day. “But if you go back to the 1970s and ’80s, there was a real blackcurrant character that has almost disappeared and is not that common anymore in whisky. We wanted blackcurrant and those kind of dark fruit flavours, in a lightly peated style.”
We’re looking forward to seeing what this small distillery achieves over the coming years.
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Description
With the distinction of being the first legal spirit ever produced on the Isle of Raasay, this classic dry gin cannot but evoke an image of illicit island distilling from years gone by. The eponymous distillery was founded in 2014 by Bill Dobbie and Alasdair Day, and this, their inaugural release, really typifies the island’s character. It’s infused with locally foraged juniper and blended with water sourced from the distillery’s well.
The spirit is presented in a bottle moulded on a selection of particularly beautiful, locally discovered fossils — encapsulating in form as in taste the island’s unique geology. The aroma is bright and brimming with juniper and citrus, whilst the palate mellows towards notes of orange, liquorice, and hints of pepper.
This is best paired with a classic tonic, orange peel, and memories that will stay with you long after the bottle is finished.
Iain Glover, Spirits Specialist, Berry Bros. & Rudd (November 2023)
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