Abhainn Dearg
Scotland's Most Westerly Malt
Abhainn Dearg is a craft distillery situated on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Herbrides. The name translates as "Red River", a reference to a bloody battle that took place in the area in the middle ages. Founded in 2008 by Mark Tayburn, the distillery was formerly home to a pair of illicit stills and, more recently, a salmon farm! For whisky-making, the distillery uses water from nearby Loch Raonasgail.
The first release was called "Spirit of Lewis" - a limited run of three year old malt bottled 2011. Since then releases have been irregular, but included various barrel finished and a cask strength edition. Abhainn Dearg is one of Scotland's smallest single malt distilleries and something of an oddity!