Gin

Bruichladdich Distillery, with its name in aqua-blue colours bold against the whitewashed stone walls, is a striking building dating from 1881 on the shores of Lochindaal, Islay. As well as the hundreds of daily visitors keen to taste the well-known whisky, the distillery also runs tours showcasing the award-winning gin called The Botanist, created first at Bruichladdich in 2010.

The concept of its creators was to make a gin that embodied the island, and so foraging experts combed the island of Islay to find all the possible botanicals available. From 33 Islay botanicals, they selected 22 to combine in a perfect balance of flavours to make their stunning gin. These include apple mint, chamomile, downy birch, gorse, sweet cicely, tansy, wild thyme, heather and of course juniper. And because foraging is so crucial to the production of the gin, the distillery holds local foraging tours for both locals and specialist chefs; they also offer superb Botanist dinners for the visiting chefs.