BUNNAHABHAIN FEIS ILE 2025 RELEASE: TURAS MATH NO. 1
15 YEAR SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKEY
ISLAY, SCOTLAND
WHY BUY:
Hold onto your glencairns, folks: this is something special: a high-octane, 15-year, double-casked single malt from Islay's beloved maverick Bunnahabhain — a distiller’s distiller, that other producers speak of with something approaching reverence. Instead of enveloping their whiskies in smoke, Bunnahabhain has perfected the art of eloquent restraint, allowing orchard fruits and honeyed sweetness to take center stage. The result has never been more fully realized than it is here, in this first installment of a thrilling new trilogy: a whisky that’s unmistakably Islay, but also lighter, unpeated, and more maritime than medicinal.
THE NAME:
Turas Math means "the beginning of the journey" in Scots Gaelic — a fitting description of the dram-atic adventure (sorry, couldn’t resist!) that this northernmost Islay producer is taking us on with its Westering Home Collection.
SPECS:
To produce Turas Math No. 1, Master Distiller Brendan McCarron combined two distinct Bunnahabhain expressions: one distilled in 2008 and fully matured for 15 years in Manzanilla Sherry casks from Jerez, and another that spent its first 10 years in refill casks before being finished in Amarone wine casks for an additional 5 years.
OUR TASTING NOTES:
We were immediately struck, in our tasting, by just how approachable the nose is, in spite of its considerable strength (55.9% ABV). The dark fruits are right up front — an abundance of juicy black cherries, ripe plums, and wild blackberries. As you spend time with your glass, you'll pick up wonderful aromatic cloves and freshly roasted nuts, and then, as you sip, fresh cinnamon pastries and deep treacle toffee. The palate expands on these notes, with layers of hazelnut, dried figs, and subtle herbal notes that add fascinating complexity without overwhelming. The finish is virtuosic, with warming spices that linger beautifully, and, not least, that perfect, telltale hint of sea spray that reminds you this was aged in warehouses right on Islay's shore.
THE STORY:
This release forms the first chapter in "The Westering Home Collection," a three-year series that pays homage to the anthem of Islay, and, not incidentally, echoes Bunnahabhain's first 12-year-old bottlings in the late 1980s, a century after the distillery was founded. The trilogy has been structured to unfold like a maritime epic, over the course of three bold and evocative installments: "Setting Sail" (2025), followed by "Storms & Discovery" (2026), and concluding with "Homeward Bound" (2027). Each bottling is meant to tell a part of Islay's story — its people, traditions, and the universal longing for connection that resonates through this island community. Bunnahabhain's seafaring history is honored in its helmsman iconography, a fitting symbol for a distillery that was once accessible only by boat and can now only be reached by a single track road — a road that seems to exist entirely for pilgrims in pursuit of some of the greatest whisky in all of Scotland.
THE METHOD:
What sets Bunnahabhain apart from its Islay neighbors — well, it’s a few things, starting with water: it's the only distillery on the island to use pure spring water with no peat influence, piped directly from the Margadale Spring. Add to that the tallest stills on Islay, which accounts for a more delicate profile in the finished product, and their wooden washbacks, which allow fermentation to stretch up to 54 hours, and it’s no secret why Bunnahabhain remains so wonderfully distinct.
ABV:
55.9% (111.8 proof); non chill-filtered, with no added color.
FUN FACT:
The name "Bunnahabhain" means "Mouth of the River" in Gaelic, referring to the Margadale River that provides the distillery's distinctive spring water.
OUR GUARANTEE:
As always, we buy and ship directly from the distiller, in order to guarantee perfect provenance. Secure yours today!