Kilchoman Scotch whisky raises £7,000

An auction for the first bottle of 10-year-old Kilchoman whisky has raised £7,000 for charity this week.

The auction was held on 14th December, the 10th Anniversary of the brand’s first cask being filled.

Kilchoman produces 20-25 barrels of whisky a week and is the only independently owned distillery on the Scottish island of Islay.

“It was a hugely proud moment,” said Kilchoman founder Antony Wills of the auction. “It’s recognition that we’re moving in the right direction.”

The auctioned bottle is the only one to come from the first ever cask Kilchoman filled, and will be the only 10-year-old bottle of the producer’s whisky for some years.

The £7,000 raised will go to The Beatson Cancer Charity, a Scottish charity that supports people with the disease.

“I think the reason the bottle fetched what it did is the interest there is now in rare and small and different types of whiskies,” Wills added.

“If we’d launched 25 years ago we’d never have had the success we’ve had.”

The distillery was the first new one to be built in Islay in 125 years, and it launched its first whiskies after three years of maturing.

“The fact we launched our whisky at such a young age was another testing thing for us,” said Wills.

“It hadn’t really been done before but now the market is awash with non-aged whiskies.”