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Whisky
in Lochaber.

It’s 01:41 in Lochaber.
Lochaber

Drams from Fort William to Ardnamurchan.

Whisky in Lochaber comes with long views and longer roads. In Fort William, a distillery founded by Long John MacDonald in 1825 draws its water from the lochans high on Ben Nevis, with tours and tastings in its visitor centre. Out on Ardnamurchan, white buildings with a pagoda-roofed kiln stand among the hills, small enough that you can watch the team at work by the stills. Over in Morvern, at Drimnin, a newer distillery makes organic single malt and a botanical spirit. If you're driving, ask about a sample to take home, and allow plenty of time for the roads.

Nc'nean Distillery→
Ardnamurchan Distillery→
Ben Nevis Distillery→
Distillery of the dayJust now

Ben Nevis Distillery.

A whisky distillery at the foot of Ben Nevis since 1825, with a visitor centre, tours and tastings.

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Distillery tours you can book.

From the mash tun to the cask, and a dram at the end of it.

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From our guideJust now

Ardnamurchan Distillery.

Halfway along the Ardnamurchan peninsula at Glenbeg, this small distillery has been making whisky since 2014. Its white buildings and pagoda-roofed kiln stand among the hills, and its labels carry the coordinates of the lighthouse at the peninsula's tip. It makes two styles of single malt, one peated and one unpeated, and both have won awards. It's small enough that on a tour you can watch the team at work around the copper stills and wooden washbacks. Book a tour ahead, and leave time for the shop.

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TodayJust nowArdnamurchanNc'nean DistilleryAttractionFort WilliamBen Nevis DistilleryTourArdnamurchanArdnamurchan DistilleryAttraction

Cold enough for a dram.

4° and clear with periodic clouds in Lochaber: the still house is the warmest room in the county.

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From the magazineJust nowThe printed copy of Issue 10Issue 10Spring / Summer 2025

The very first bottle of whisky from Nc'nean, a distillery on the Morvern peninsula, sold for £41,000 at a charity auction.

Annabel Thomas named the distillery she was building on the west coast after Neachneohain, a Gaelic goddess of Scottish folklore, a huntress and fierce protector of nature. In August 2020, after seven years of work, she held the finished whisky at last, and the first 10 bottles were auctioned for five charities close to the team's hearts. As Annabel says, 'We thought we would make around £20,000 for them, but the first bottle alone went for £41,000'. In the end the auction raised £96,000. The organic distillery runs on wood chips from a local forest, bottles its whisky in recycled glass, and is the first distillery in Scotland to be classed as net-zero.

See Nc'nean Distillery · Lochaber
From our guideJust now

Nc'nean Distillery.

At the end of a long road through Morvern, beyond Lochaline, Nc'nean is an independent distillery at Drimnin, founded by Annabel Thomas. It does things its own way. It uses only organic Scottish barley, runs entirely on renewable energy and bottles its spirits in recycled glass. As well as organic single malt, it makes an unaged botanical spirit. The tours and tastings welcome complete beginners as warmly as whisky lovers. Book ahead, and allow plenty of time for the long drive down the peninsula.

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