Founding a distillery on Islay is something of a no-brainer.
The famous island has been a home to world class distilleries for centuries, producing liquid that is coveted all over the world.
When Brian Crook and Ben Inglis set up their distillery in 2017, their facility had a subtle point of difference to the others on the island: they were distilling rum, not whisky.
What some drinks writers may have thought was a typo – “it’s definitely rum?” – was actually a clear vision from the distillery founders.
Caroline James, Brian’s daughter, explained: “The cool Atlantic climate changes how our ferments behave and how spirit matures in cask, so a rum made here doesn’t taste like a rum made anywhere else. Islay has set the standard in spirits for generations; we wanted to see what that environment and that craft could do with a completely different spirit.”
There are three core expressions in the company’s range. Each begins in the same way, with sustainably-sourced molasses which is fermented on-site, before distillation in the distillery’s copper pot still.
The Geal rum is the distillery’s original release. A 45% ABV unaged white rum with a subtle smoky edge, it works just as well neat as it does in Daiquiris, punches and long serves.
Islay’s Barrel Aged rum is rested in oak casks that previously held some of that legendary Islay single malt, which imparts gentle smoke, vanilla and coastal salinity. Bottled at 46% ABV, it’s described as ‘the natural bridge for whisky drinkers’.
The Peat Spiced recipe includes orange, ginger, cacao nibs and a few secret ingredients, which are smoked over a peat fire. The 40% ABV spirit is described as ‘a smoky spiced rum unlike anything else’.
Beyond the core range there is also the Overproof rum, which combines five distillation runs and mixes three-week ferments with six-week wild ferments to create a 63% ABV rum that contains ‘richly layered, all ripe tropical fruit, warming spice and depth’.
This year, the distillery received a prestigious 3-star award for its Barrel Aged rum at Great Taste 2026, the world’s largest food and drink awards where, of the 15,038 products entered this year, only 2% achieved that top rating after being judged blind by a panel of industry experts.
Those judges described Barrel Aged as ‘astonishingly exciting’ adding: “The flavours burst on to the front palate with coconutty, toasty sweetness underpinned with the smoky, oaky notes. We adored it. It intrigued us, inviting us back time and time again to find new points of interest. The flavours kept on developing, with a finish that is balanced and lengthy. It is an exquisite rum.”
James commented: “Three stars from judges who tasted it blind, with no idea where it came from, tells us the liquid speaks for itself and we are so, so proud of this achievement for the entire team.”
Islay’s Barrel Aged also took Double Gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition, while the Original Islay Rum Overproof won Gold Outstanding at the International Wine & Spirit Competition, both scoring 98 points.
Inglis added: “We’re still a young distillery, so to have three of the industry’s top awards behind us inside a year tells us the spirit we set out to make is the spirit in the bottle.
“Barrel Aged could only come from Islay: the ex-peated casks, the slow maturation our climate forces on it, the salt in the air, they all leave their mark on the rum. Fewer than one in fifty products entered this year took three stars, and for a rum made on a whisky island to be among them means everything to the team.”
As Islay Rum looks to build its footprint in the on-trade the team is focused on outlets that champion Scottish produce, and have an affinity for Islay in particular.
If that sounds like you, the range is stocked by wholesalers including Select Drams, Inverarity Morton and River Tweed Whiskies.
