Spirits · Port Ellen, Islay

Laphroaig Distillery

Bold, medicinal Islay single malt with peat smoke from its own maltings.

Founded: 1815
Founded by: Donald Johnston, Alexander Johnston
Based in: Port Ellen, Islay

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Their story

Laphroaig was founded in 1815 by brothers Donald and Alexander Johnston on the south coast of Islay, near Port Ellen. The Johnston family ran it for well over a century.

When the last family owner, Ian Hunter, died in 1954, he left the distillery to his manager Bessie Williamson, one of the first women to run a Scotch distillery. Today Laphroaig is owned by Suntory Global Spirits. It holds a Royal Warrant from King Charles, awarded when he visited as Prince of Wales in 1994, and its Friends of Laphroaig club has gathered fans worldwide since that same year.

How it's made

About a tenth of the barley is still malted at the distillery and dried over hand-cut Islay peat, which gives Laphroaig its strong smoky, medicinal style. Most of the whisky ages in American oak ex-bourbon barrels, and the Quarter Cask is finished in smaller casks for more contact with the wood.