Islay’s Newest Distillery
The opening of Ardnahoe Distillery in Islay was a dream come true for Stewart Hunter Laing and his two sons, Andrew and Scott. The Laing family has a deep connection with Islay and a reverence for its distinctive, peated malt whiskies, so there was no doubt that Isle of Islay had to be the site for their own distillery. Stewart Hunter Laing told Bishan Kumar that Ardnahoe Scotch whiskies will certainly make their mark as Jim McEwan, the master blender, knows what is best.
Ardnahoe is the newest distillery on Islay and was officially launched to the public in April of 2019. The Hebridean island’s ninth whisky
producer filled its first cask on 9th November 2018, under the able guidance of whisky guru Jim McEwan. Therefore it is still a long wait for Islay malt lovers to get the taste of Ardnahoe’s first whisky. Stewart Hunter Laing told Bishan Kumar that Ardnahoe Scotch whiskies will certainly make their mark as Jim McEwan, the master blender, knows what is best.
Stewart’s father had a whisky company which opened the door for him to enter into the world of whisky. Whisky had always around him from a young age so he took to the industry naturally, like a fish takes to water. At a very young age he developed a fascination towards the construction of whisky, which developed his interest into pursuing a career within the industry.
Elaborating on the vision of the Laing family, he says, “Integrity, honesty, innovation and demand for perfection in all that we do,” which,
he candidly admits, “is not always achievable.”
“In addition to this, we aim to give our consumers the best whisky possible,” he affirms. Talking about how they set up the company, he says his love for whisky developed throughout his career, and his family always had a belief that they would one day buy their own distillery. “However, there were none available in Islay, so we decided the best way to protect our future would be to build our very own distillery,” he adds with a smile.
