On the KWA journeys the distilleries have been the main object for our trips. We´ve made several distillery visits through the years and every distillery always has something new to tell us. Here are the most rememberable ones who have made on extraordinary impression on us. We can call them our “Hall of Fame” for Whisk(e)y distillery’s.
Aberlour
Aberlour was the first distillery that KWA visited, on the first official journey, and what a start! Located in the village of Aberlour in the middle of the Speyside area, surrounded by the dramatic Highland scenery of Ben Rinnes where the Lour burn joins the River Spey, <phuuu>. [Read the full story]
Lagavulin
In 2012 KWA visited Lagavulin. Lagavulin is located at the Lagavulin bay on the south coast of Islay. The area around the bay once was a paradise for smugglers.In the middle of the 1700 there were at least ten illicit distilleries around the bay. So the area is holy ground for whisky lovers. [Read the full story]
Old Bushmills
In 2013 KWA went to Ireland. Bushmills is located on Northern Ireland near the coast just about 40 km from Islay. So from Bushmills you can almost smell the peat smoke from the distilleries on Islay. But Bushmills doesn’t make whisky with peat. Bushmills whisky is a in the opposite direction, triple distilled and very smooth. [Read the full story]
Buffalo Trace
In April 2014 KWA went “overseas” to explore what is considered to be the capital state of bourbon, i. e. Kentucky. Our first goal on this trip was Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, a distillery which we think might be the very best of them all. With brands such as Rock Hill Farms, Eagle Rare, Ancient Age, Blanton´s, W L Weller, Sazerac, Old Charter, Hancock´s, George T Stagg, Elmer T Lee and Van Winkle it comes as no surprise that Buffalo Trace often has been awarded for its high-quality products. [Read the full story]
Willett (Kentucky Bourbon Distillers)
On the Kentucky journey 2014 we reached Bardstown. If Kentucky is the capital state of Bourbon then Bardstown is the capital city. Bardstown, reminding you of a fairytale city, has been chosen America’s ‘Most Beautiful Small Town’ in some magazine. In the edge of this city you will find Willet. Willet is one of the smallest big distilleries or one of the biggest small ones, which is one of the things that makes them so interesting. [Read the full story]
Highland Park
On the North Highland and Orkney tour 2015 we reached the town Kirkwall on the “Mainland” which is the main island of Orkney. Highland Park is placing on the top of a hill in the south end of Kirkwall, very beautiful indeed. When you walk in to Highland Park distillery it´s like to walk in to a medievally village there every building seems to be in perfect shape and every machine is well maintenances. [Read the full story]
Springbank
In 2016, KWA on the “Campbeltown and Lowland” tour visited Springbank. Far south on the Kintyre Peninsula, in the small town of Campbeltown, Springbank Distillery has its domicile. If there is any town that really dates back to when it comes to making whiskey, it’s Cambeltown. Once upon a time , there were 28 producers of whisky here and Campbeltown was claiming the title as the world’s “whisky capital”. [Read the full story]
George A. Dickel & Co.
In 2017 KWA, travelling in in US Tennessee, visited George A. Dickel distillery. The distillery is placed in Cascade Hollow near Normandy City in Bedford County in the rolling woodlands of southern middle Tennessee in the heart of horse, antique, space, and whiskey country, very beautiful indeed. [Read the full story]
Belgrove
In 2018 KWA made a trip to Australia with Tasmania. On that trip, we visited eight distillers and many of them were fantastic and innovatively thinking regarding their whisky making and products but the distillery which made the greatest impact on us was Belgrove [Read the full story]
Chichibu
On our Nippon tour 2019 we visited one of the smaller distilleries in Japan, “Chichibu”. Chichibu may be small in production volume but all the bigger when it comes to quality and tradition. The tradition is held by the founder Ichiro Akuto who started building the distillery in 2004 and it was in operation 2008.[Read the full story]
Miyagikyo
The last distillery we visited on our Nippon journey 2019 was maybe the most interesting. 23 km west of the town Sendai is Miyagikyo located on the main island Honshu in Miyagi Prefecture, carefully placed in a glen where the two rivers Shinkawa and Hirose meets among the surrounding mountains, how beautiful can it be? [Read the full story]
