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Isle of Raasay distillery

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Coordinates: 57°21′07″N 6°04′26″W / 57.35183°N 6.07382°W / 57.35183; -6.07382
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Isle of Raasay Distillery
Region: Island
LocationIsle of Raasay
OwnerR&B Distillers
Founded2014
FounderBill Dobbie & Alasdair Day
Water sourceTobar na ba baine spring and borehole
No. of stills1 wash still
1 spirit still
Capacity940,000 L (210,000 imp gal; 250,000 US gal)
Websiteraasaydistillery.com

Isle of Raasay Distillery is a Scotch whisky and gin distillery on the Inner Hebridean Isle of Raasay in Northwest Scotland.[1] The distillery is owned by R&B Distillers and was the first legal distillery on the Isle of Raasay when it opened in 2017.[2]

Production

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R&B Distillers was founded in 2014 by Bill Dobbie and Alasdair Day.[3] The company started its operations at the Isle of Raasay in September 2017 after receiving its distiller's license.[4] The water used during the distilling process in the production of whisky comes from a Celtic Iron Age well.[5] The water has a high mineral content derived from the island's volcanic and sandstone rock.[6]

The whisky is distilled in copper pot stills and is matured at the distillery on Raasay in a variety of oak casks. The distillery will produce approximately 200,000 litres of pure alcohol per year.[7] The distillery's flagship brand is Isle of Raasay Single Malt Scotch Whisky released since 2020. Since then, the distillery has also released a number of limited special and single cask whiskies.[8]

Location and visitor centre

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The distillery is based on the site of a former disused hotel called Borodale House on the southwest of the island.[9] The Isle of Raasay Distillery also has a visitors’ centre that opened in January 2018.[10] It was awarded 5 stars by VisitScotland as a tourist attraction in June 2018.[11][12] The distillery also features a six–bedroom hotel with views over the Isle of Skye.[13] In 2023, the distillery ranked third in a Cask Connoisseur ranking of the most popular whisky distilleries.[14]

In 2025, the distillery launched its visitor accommodation, incorporating five luxury cabins called Na Bothain, and six guest bedrooms inside the distillery itself.[15]

Products

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The first bottlings to carry the Raasay name were the While We Wait expressions, a series of five independently bottled single malt whiskies that would indicate the future style of the distillery.[16] The first of these whiskies was released in 2017; the last in 2020. The final While We Wait release was subtitled Last Orders, in reference to the discontinuation of the brand.[17]

The first single malt to be distilled at Raasay distillery was released in September 2020, as a run of 7500 bottles. The whisky was matured in Tennessee whisky casks and finished in Bordeaux wine casks.[18] In 2025, a limited edition whisky was released in support of Skye Live Festival.[19]

In addition to whisky, the distillery also make Isle of Raasay gin. The gin uses ten botanicals, including rhubarb root and cubeb pepper.[20] It was launched in July 2019, pre-dating the first whisky release from the company.[21] The gin uses water from the distillery's historic onsite well, Tobar na Ba Bàine.[22]

Awards

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  • IWSC 2016 Silver, ISC 2016 Bronze,[23] HKIWSC 2016 Bronze[24]
  • ISC 2017 Bronze
  • IWSC Silver 2018
  • IWSC Silver 2016 for Raasay While We Wait Second Release[25]
  • World Whiskies Awards 2018 Best Scotch Grain[26]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Cumming, Ed (3 June 2018). "Whisky galore: in fine spirits on Raasay, Inner Hebrides". the Guardian. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  2. ^ "First distillery opened on Raasay". BBC News. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  3. ^ "Interview with Alasdair Day of Raasay Distillery". Malt. 18 September 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  4. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery now has an official opening date - Scotsman Food and Drink". Scotsman Food and Drink. 7 August 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  5. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery undertakes a second year of barley variety trials on Raasay". www.scotlandfoodanddrink.org. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  6. ^ "An inside look at the Scottish island of Raasay's first legal distillery". Foodism. 15 August 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  7. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery - Premier Construction News". Premier Construction News. 1 November 2017. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  8. ^ "Isle of Raasay "Na Sia" Single Casks: Erfolgsrezept der Brennerei entschlüsselt • CaptainScotch.de". CaptainScotch.de (in German). 6 September 2022. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery | Isle of Skye | Activities | CalMac Ferries Ltd". www.calmac.co.uk. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  10. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery Tours & Whisky Tastings". www.raasay.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  11. ^ Dorsey, Kristy (14 June 2018). "Island distillery gets five-star rating". businessInsider. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  12. ^ Roz. "Raasay Distillery Visitors Centre awarded 5-Stars by VisitScotland". theskyetimes.co.uk. Archived from the original on 11 October 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  13. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery in Isle of Raasay | Hotel Rates & Reviews on Orbitz". www.orbitz.com. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Erhebung: Das sind die 10 beliebtesten Whisky-Brennereien in Schottland, England, Wales und Irland • CaptainScotch.de". CaptainScotch.de (in German). 28 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  15. ^ Briggs, Fiona (13 August 2025). "Isle of Raasay Distillery expands with new luxury accommodation 'Na Bothain' opening October 2025". Retail Times.
  16. ^ Flicker, Jonah (20 April 2021). "Isle of Raasay Distillery Gears Up for Inaugural Release with Final While We Wait Single Malt". The Manual.
  17. ^ "Isle of Raasay Distillery calls last orders on While We Wait single malt series". Dram. 24 March 2020.
  18. ^ Erskine, Rosalind (18 November 2020). "Isle of Raasay unveils first legal whisky made on the Hebridean island".
  19. ^ "Isle of Raasay Celebrates 10 Years of Skye Live With Limited Edition Scotch". The Whisk(e)y Wash. 1 May 2025.
  20. ^ Murphy, Sean (28 July 2019). "Raasay Distillery launches exciting new Hebridean Scottish gin". The Scotsman.
  21. ^ "First legal spirit from Isle of Raasay launched". The Scottish Gin Society. 27 July 2019.
  22. ^ "Meet the Distiller: Iain Robertson, Isle of Raasay Distillery". The Gin Cooperative. 29 December 2019.
  23. ^ "R&B Distillers win two bronze medals in HKIWSC – FAB News". www.fabnews.live. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  24. ^ "World Whisky Day 2018 – Raasay cocktails at Bull in a China shop – Scotch Whisky News". www.whiskyintelligence.com. 12 May 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
  25. ^ "R&B Distillers Announce that their Raasay While We Wait whisky has won Silver award in the IWSC 2016 – Scotch Whisky News". www.whiskyintelligence.com. 2 August 2016.
  26. ^ "World Whiskies Awards 2018 - Winners". www.worldwhiskiesawards.com. Retrieved 11 October 2018.

57°21′07″N 6°04′26″W / 57.35183°N 6.07382°W / 57.35183; -6.07382

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