Tobermory Adds Two New Whiskies as it Gets Ready to Shut for Two Years

Scotland’s Tobermory Distillery, located on the Isle of Mull, is known for its Ledaig peated and Tobermory unpeated whisky brand lines. It is set to release one of each as a new bottling, while at the same time announcing it will be shuttered for up to two years while its facilities undergo apparently much-needed refurbishments.

First, the releases. Tobermory is adding to its line up the Ledaig 19-Year-Old (51% ABV), said to have been made with some of the first-ever peated single malt made at this facility. It has been finished in Marsala wine casks, and prices around £125 (about $160 USD). Limited tasting notes suggest “a mouth-filling sweetness of berries and dark chocolate with a full peat explosion of black pepper and bonfire smoke.”

Joining the Ledaig is the Tobermory 21-Year-Old, bottled at 53.8% ABV and pricing around £130 (about $165 USD). Finished in Manzanilla sherry casks, this two-decades-old Scotch is portrayed as being amber gold in color and having limited official tasting notes that speak of citrus, dried fruits, rich oak and orange spice.

While these new whiskies are circulating, Tobermory parent company Distell is investing in upgrading and refurbishing the distillery, which will require closing it for upwards of two years. Though no active production will be going on during this time, the visitor center will remain open and a limited amount of whisky from both lines will remain available for sale, both at the center and on the open market.

“Whisky tourism continues to thrive with numbers across the industry increasing on average by 20% over the past five years,” said Distell’s European Managing Director, Fraser Thornton, in a prepared statement. “Tobermory has demonstrated even stronger growth in visitors and we want to invest in the only distillery on the island and continue to ensure it produces some of the best island malts in Scotland, as well as a truly memorable experience for visitors.”