Notes from a small island

Editor Marcin Miller travels to the Hebrides

Call me selfish, but there are some things in life that I want to keep to myself. Nothing unwholesome, you understand. It's simply a matter of secrecy. Something so good that I just don't want to share. However, and against my better judgement, it is my professional duty to tell all.

The Hebridean isles of Islay and Jura initiate precisely such uncharitable thoughts. From the moment you leave the mainland coast, accompanied by the rattling of wings and propellers, the breathtaking views and sense of expectation are inspirational. It is a 40-minute westbound flight from Glasgow that fills the soul with joyous anticipation.

Nothing is spiritually further from the humdrum, urban, loud, rude, unhealthy, dangerous and frankly exhausting lifestyle so many of us endure these days than the peace, solitude and unspoilt natural beauty to be found on a small Scottish island. Scotland has many islands but only one of them, Isaly, has seven working distilleries to its name. Names such as Ardbeg, Bowmore, Bruichladdich, Lagavulin and Laphroaig warm the heart. The distinctive bold flavours of Islay malts, derived from the maritime influence and the peaty soil, are leading the worldwide thirst for single malt Scotch whisky.

Whisky is not just a drink. It is a cultural product. Apersonal anecdote: when my wife first visited Islay with me she spent the flight worrying about offending our hosts, Bowmore, as she despised whisky. Within minutes of our arrival, she was sitting on the banks of ...

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• By : Marcin Miller
• In : Editor's View
• Issue : 3
• Page : 3
• Words : 665