Whisky Galore from the Island of Barra

Isle of Barra beach

Continuing on the theme of the inextricable link between quaichs and whisky, news comes from the Hebrides of an interesting initiative, designed to include and involve the local community. The classic 1949 film Whisky Galore, starring (amongst others) Gordon Jackson and Joan Greenwood, is familiar to people across the globe, famous for its quintessentially Scottish humour.  An exciting  new development is planned on the island of Barra, which featured in Whisky Galore and helped put the Hebrides on the world stage!

The island lies in the Atlantic Ocean, 90 miles by ferry from mainland Scotland, at the southern end of the archipelago that forms the Outer Hebrides.  Barra covers an area of 35 square miles, has a number of superb sandy beaches, and has its highest point Heaval at 383 metres (1257 feet).

Barra’s distillery is one of  the smallest in Scotland, but plans under the guise of a new company – Uisge Beatha Nan Eilean – are designed to help to reinvogorate the local community, who would own and run the project under a community benefit society model.  Currently the 12,000 population of the island relies for income on tourism, fishing and fish processing.  With a target production of 25,000 litres of whisky per annum, the intention is for the revamped distillery to generate cash which would fund a range of other community projects. Community Shares Scotland, which supports community enterprises and is funded by the Scottish Government, has been advising on the project.

In the fullness of time, no doubt this fine Barra whisky will be drunk from a range of quaichs, some of which will hopefully come from us at Quaichshop!

The distillery will clearly be environmentally friendly, using local water (naturally!), locally-grown barley and power from renewable energy sources, including solar and wind power.  The finished whisky will be natural, as well as reflecting the local environment – it will contain no additives and will not be freeze filtered.  Some years will have to pass before the first of this Barra whisky is ready for bottling – a ghost spirit can be bottled within three years, but it has to mature for at least three years before it can be called whisky.

Barra’s new whisky will be a niche product, designed to attract whisky connoisseurs and collectors, in line with the general movement away from blended whiskies and towards single malts.  Barra will join GlenWyvis Distillery in Dingwall, which has already gone down the road of the community shares scheme, with quite a high degree of success thus far.

 

Ally Reid