Iconic Scottish distilleries to release special edition whiskies for Fèis Ìle 2025

Two of Islay's renowned distilleries, Lagavulin and Caol Ila, are preparing to dazzle whisky lovers once again at Fèis Ìle 2025 with the unveiling of two striking limited-edition releases, each offering a fresh twist on the distilleries' classic characters. Lagavulin, which made some of the most popular whiskies of last year , is set to unveil its Fèis Ìle 2025 15 Year-Old, finished in Moscatel de Málaga casks. This rare expression adds unexpected sweetness and spice to Lagavulin's signature smokiness, creating a multi-layered whisky experience. On the nose, it opens with salted toffee and ripe berries, underpinned by the brand's hallmark maritime and medicinal notes. Lagavulin's special edition 15 Year Old is bottled at a robust 55.7 per cent ABV and priced at £240. Only 1,596 bottles of this rich, smoky single malt will be available, sold through the distillery and online via malts.com. The palate is creamy and rich, with a balanced profile of sweet, salty, spicy and smoky flavours. A long, dry finish follows, laced with fragrant Lagavulin smoke and a surprising kick of Sichuan pepper. 'Innovation is at the heart of what we do at Lagavulin and, this year, we wanted to offer something truly special,' said Lagavulin Distillery Manager Jordan Paisley. 'While researching our archives, we discovered a reference to Moscatel de Málaga hogshead casks, which inspired this release. The result is a beautifully complex whisky that adds layers to our signature smoke. We're excited to share it with our fans at Fèis Ìle.' Meanwhile, Caol Ila is pushing boundaries with its special edition for Fèis Ìle, The Isay Festival, which runs from Friday, May 23, to Saturday, May 31. Caol Ile is bringing out a bold 8 Year Old release that explores new flavour territory. This special bottling has been matured in refill casks and a mix of Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso-seasoned casks, then finished in Colombian Oak, a first for the distillery. The result is a dram that surprises with its smooth, waxy texture and richly sweet character, amplified by Caol Ila's signature smoky depth. Notes of spice and peppery heat further enhance its complexity. Caol Ila's 8 Year Old festival expression comes in at 55.8 per cent ABV, retailing for £110. A total of 1,476 bottles will be released, also available both at the distillery and on malts.com. Describing the dram, whisky expert Charles MacLean said: 'Even at reduced strength, the taste is intense!' Martin Gaughan, Caol Ila's newly appointed Distillery Manager, said he's especially excited to share the distillery's latest creation, and to mark a personal milestone. 'This release is all about exploration, both for us who enjoy Caol Ila and all the new visitors to Islay during Fèis Ìle,' he said. 'The finish in Colombian Oak casks has brought a fascinating twist, enhancing Caol Ila's natural richness with unexpected sweet and spicy layers. I can't wait for all of our fans to experience it first-hand at my first Fèis Ìle as Caol Ila's Distillery Manager.' Both the Lagavulin and Caol Ila Fèis Ìle 2025 editions will be available to buy on their respective open days, offered on a first come first served basis. Lagavulin Day will take place on Saturday, May 24, followed by Caol Ila Day on Monday, May 26. The celebrations don't stop at whisky releases. Each distillery is set to host a full day of tastings, music and exclusive events . Lagavulin's programme includes 'Beyond The Smoke', an immersive sensory experience hosted by Distillery Manager Jordan Paisley and Private Client Host Barry Nisbet. This guided tasting delves into the history and craftsmanship behind the distillery's iconic smoke character, and includes a rare sample of a 17 Year-Old Lagavulin. At Caol Ila, 'Flavour & History' takes centre stage. This interactive blending session allows guests to create their own custom 200ml whisky blend. Led by Rory Slater, who worked on this year's Fèis Ìle bottling, alongside Senior Malts Archivist Jo McKerchar, the event provides a hands-on journey through the flavours and stories that define Caol Ila's legacy. Later in the week, on Wednesday, May 28, Caol Ila will host a special 'Manager's Evening'. Distillery leaders from Caol Ila, Lagavulin, Port Ellen and The Maltings will come together for a Q&A session and tasting. The evening offers guests the chance to engage directly with the people behind the drams, while sampling a range of premium hand-selected malts. Tickets for Fèis Ìle 2025 are still available via malts.com for those eager to take part in the world's largest whisky and music celebration.

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The Herald Scotland

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• The Herald Scotland

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We're in that imposing big edifice at the foot of University Avenue called the James McCune Smith Learning Hub, which I should also point out has a hearty cafeteria where a chap like me can get all of his five-a-week in one sitting. It all started with 'that abortion story' as I clumsily describe it. They tell me 'that abortion story' is somewhat more nuanced than this. 'There's a society on campus called Glasgow Students for Choice, a pro-abortion group who raise awareness and funds for their cause,' said Mr Gallagher. 'They'd received some match tickets from Partick Thistle, who were keen for more students to attend their games.' At this point, Ms McKay tells me she's very pro-abortion and had considered joining this group. It seems though, that Glasgow Students for choice raffled the tickets off to raise cash for an abortion charity. Partick Thistle got wind of this though, and said they didn't want to be associated with it and that besides, the tickets were a free donation and not for fund-raising. The Herald Student Journalism Award winners (Image: Mark F Gibson) 'We understand that some Catholic students had informed the football club,' they say. Ms Gallagher says they wrote the story up for the Glasgow Guardian, having solicited comment from both Thistle and the Abortion group. 'It was a straightforward news story, containing no bias and we wanted to publish it. But someone contacted the editor anonymously, claiming it wasn't true. We were then told not to run with it.' The pair had also wanted to run with a story about Sandy Brindley, the embattled chief of Rape Crisis Scotland who had connections to Glasgow University. 'But the editors killed that story quickly too, insisting it was 'anti-women, which it certainly wasn't. I thought it was in the students' interest to run it, says Ms McKay. 'Of course it's a sensitive issue but we're supposed to be about publishing stories about sensitive issues.' 'That's when we told them we were leaving the paper because we weren't happy about them killing stories. We both still wanted a platform to write and we both still had ambitions of getting into journalism.' In the course of a single weekend, they built a news website; purchased the domain name and published their first story on-line: a belter about a bloke who'd exposed himself in the University library which was picked up by the nationals. 'We got a decent following right away and many requests from students wanting to write for us.' Some of them, it seemed, had been rather intimidated by the rarefied atmosphere around the Glasgow Guardian with its 30 editors. 'Print is very expensive,' says Mr Gallagher, 'but both Katie and I had part-time jobs and had just enough to self-fund an initial 12-page print run of 400 copies which were quickly snapped up.' 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'At the Hillhead Review,' declares Ms McKay, 'we want to give people an opportunity to express different views from outside that narrow echo chamber that's become dominated by the Far Left. Her colleague adds: 'All some people want to write about is Palestine and trans rights. 'A lot of this is coming from middle managers. I don't think many of the senior academic staff believe any of this and nor do a lot of students. It's all about ideological capture by people who don't want a debate or scrutiny. We don't want to be told what to think and to be free to speak.' These are the principles on which the University was built and it's reassuring that some of our brightest and best young people still cherish them. I'm also delighted that Scotland's mightiest university in its newspaper capital has two excellent titles scrapping for news and readers like the old days. Kevin McKenna is a Herald writer and columnist. He's fiercely proud of never having been approached by any political party or lobbying firm to do their bidding.