21/04/2023
Chapter 14
A chat with... Anthony Wills (Kilchoman) - #10
Kilchoman, founded in 2005, was the first new distillery to be built on Islay in over 124 years. The distillery is a family run business established by husband and wife team Anthony and Kathy Wills, following their desire to resurrect the grass roots tradition of farm distilling, from which their 100% Islay range is inspired since day one.
Their mission is to support the revival of single malt whisky being cultivated from barley to bottle in a single location with quality and consistency, where nothing is outsourced.
Anthony, whom we chatted with this time, is the Managing Director and Master Distiller, Kathy runs the Visitor centre and they were then joined by their three sons James, George and Peter who manage the distillery’s sales and marketing activities.
Let’s see what he told us…
And if you want to read a bit more about some of their bottlings don’t miss out Jack’s Chapter 8, where he tells about our last distillery visit and tasting.
Hi Anthony, thank you for taking the time to chat with us. Please introduce yourself, and tell us a little bit about your whisky journey so far.
I’m Anthony Wills, founder of the Kilchoman distillery. I initially joined the whisky world in 1995, after having previously been involved in the wine industry for 15 years.
My family moved to Scotland, and I started my own independent bottling company, buying casks and bottling them for the premium market around the world.
When and how did you join this growing industry?
Being an independent bottler really showed me the potential of creating a new distillery, especially on Islay, as in the early 2000’s the demand for Islay whisky was increasing.
The project was risky, especially on Islay, but almost 18 later I can say we have made it.
Now tell us a bit more about Kilchoman, what is it that makes it stand out in the whisky industry?
Kilchoman in my mind, has always been unique, like no other distilleries in Scotland at the time. We are a family run farm distillery and we grow, malt, distil, mature and bottle at the distillery.
The Island has over thirty family in farming, and having secured a partnership in one of the most fertile land in the island, made the production on site challenging, but certainly rewarding.
This is very different from most distilleries in Scotland, we have traceability and flexibility to experiment with the barley varieties and their flavours through the stills.
Can you tell us what Kilchoman's target audience is?
Our target audience was initially whisky enthusiasts and connoisseurs, but we have now broadened our appeal to include first time whisky drinkers.
The style of the heavily peated Kilchoman such as Machir bay and Sanaig is fruity and floral, along with smoky and iodine, so they are accessible whiskies to get started with the peaty style.
Our signature 100% Islay is more connoisseurs oriented, as made completely with our local barley.
Since 2021 we have started to state the barley varieties used, as well as the vintages, so it is more researched for a public wanting to know the different flavours produced by the varieties, but approachable to all, as it features only a light smokiness and a higher ABV.
Can you tell us how you select your casks, and anticipate anything about what we can expect to see next?
We fill mainly ex bourbon and ex oloroso sherry casks, and we recently changed supplier of Bourbon casks, from Buffalo Trace to Breckenridge Distillery in the USA but we will not see this change into our whiskies for at least another 4 to 5 years.We then use Jose Miguel Martin in Spain for Oloroso, as well as Fino and PX.
This way we get the quality and consistency from the casks we fill, which helps with the production of our core range products.
We also fill a variety of experimental casks, mainly ex fortified wine casks that we use for full maturation, as I enjoy the development of full maturation and the difference they bring into the market, along with finishing. In 2021 and 2022, we released a number of tequila and Mezcal finish single casks, as well as Calvados finishes and full maturations, which they all have been appreciated and have worked well with the style of Kilchoman.
We have recently sourced some ex Rye casks from Peerless Distillery in the USA, and it will be interesting to see how they perform while in May we will release a Cognac Matured and a Fino Matured, which I am really satisfied with the outcome of these full maturations.
What advice would you give to a beginner that is approaching this world and perhaps starting his/her own collection?
The best places to find a wide variety of single malts and independent bottlers are certainly whisky festivals, from across Scotland and all over the world.
Depending by the collection one’s is interested to start, I can recommend focusing on the well known established distilleries, if ones are looking to resell as these will give you the best returns.
On a completely different note, the independent bottlers and smaller distilleries for different flavours and more experimentation, if you want to open these bottles.
Lastly, what is, generally speaking, your favourite whisky style (cask type, ageing, peated/unpeated etc.)? What’s your dram of choice at the moment and/or your go to drams on a Friday evening?
My favourite whisky style is matured in ex bourbon barrels.
Peated style is my favourite, and I personally enjoy a dram of a Kilchoman 16 year old single cask at cask strength, so it would be my first choice.
Official website: https://www.kilchomandistillery.com/
Drams
and more...
Today's drams
- Kilchoman Machir Bay Cask Strenght – 58.3%
- Kilchoman Sanaig – 46%
- Kilchoman Loch Grom – 46%
- Kilchoman Casado 2022 – 46%
- Kilchoman 100% Islay – 50%