South Skye’s Torafest 2026 brewed up another festive atmosphere in the Torabhaig Distillery courtyard last weekend.
Music by Eilidh Cèilidh, the Breakish Cèilidh Band, and pipers from the Isle of Skye Pipe Band all provided an excellent soundscape to showcase the whisky made there as it was served up, simply as your local dram, or in delicious cocktails devised and created by the Torabhaig team.
Visitor centre manager Anne O’Lone added: “Drawing lots of compliments were the barbecued venison burgers supplied by Lochalsh Butchers and the hot-smoked salmon served on our infamous whisky and food pairing tour supplied by Isle of Skye Smokehouse.
“The whisky and chocolate pairing tour, which runs weekly, provided a luxurious experience with chocolates made for us by Chocolates of Glenshiel. Also thanks to The Pantry in Broadford, Skyelark on the Armadale Pier, as well as the many others who all help us to keep it local. A shout-out to Robert from Mezz-Deck who is creating some great content for us.”
Torabhaig’s limited edition festival bottling this year, the Winged Isle or An t-Eilean Sgitheanach, ties in nicely with their ongoing dinosaur exhibition. Available to purchase from the distillery or on-line shop only, this whisky is crafted using heritage Chevalier barley – a grain first developed in the 1820s – alongside modern barley strains.
Anne added: “Rather than focusing this release around one specific cask type or finishing period, Winged Isle is much more a reflection of our approach to blending. A combination of differing cask styles, ages and maturation have been brought together carefully to shape the whisky as a whole, allowing the balance of smoke, oak and spirit character to develop – says our whiskymaker, Neil MacLeod Mathieson.”
