Isle of Harris The Hearach First Release Single Malt Scotch Whisky 700ml

The distillery has just completed the full maturation of its first legal single malt whisky, The Hearach. This is a historic single malt whisky from the Isle of Harris, as they revive the distilling traditions lost during the Pabbay clearances of the 1840s. Made using soft Outer Hebrides water rom the Abhainn Cnoc a ’Charrain, which runs over the oldest rocks on earth, and 100% Scottish Concerto barley that was lightly peated at 12-15ppm using peat cut by hand at ‘Cleite Mhòr’, an area of South Harris where peat has been harvested for generations. Isle of Harris also practise long fermentation which goes for 5 days. It’s also matured in three types of cask, first-fill ex-bourbon, Oloroso sherry casks and Fino Sherry butts. The warm Atlantic sea air also contributes to the maturation process. It’s bottled without chill-filtration and there’s no colouring at 46% alc/vol. Released in batches of 12,000 bottles and each batch is married for a minimum of five weeks where the youngest spirit is 5 years old.

“Every drop of the whisky has been ‘distilled by Harris hands’, fulfilling Burr’s aim to generate employment and keep people on the island. The whisky, a ‘spirit of distinction’ was to be a reflection of Harris, or Harris in a bottle”, said Simon Erlanger.