Jura Whisky

Off the Scottish west coast, in the Inner Hebrides, is a remote island with the name Jura. The island is small with about two hundred people living there, and it’s to this day quite the hassle to get there. It was equally quite problematic to transport the tall stills to the island – Jura is actually home to some of the tallest island stills. The taller the still, the purer the spirit.

The Jura distillery produces single malt whisky, and the dram is characterised by sweetness and a subtle smokiness. Jura comprises of a wide-ranging collection representing a variety of ages and styles, and it’s not only the whisky, which will awake fascination – a visit to the distillery and the island of Jura is unique in the truest sense of the word.

The Inner Hebridean terroir

The name “Jura” comes from Old Norse, meaning “deer island”, which refers to the large deer herds, which to this day inhabit the island. One of the island’s most notable claims to fame, besides its distillery, of course, is the fact George Orwell famously wrote his novel 1984 there.

The Isle of Jura is 30 miles long and 7 miles wide, it’s home of one single village, and the rest is wilderness. The Atlantic ocean is abrasive on the western coast of the island, while the east coast is defined by seals, sea eagles and serene bays. With wild mountains, peaceful lochs, trails and stunning views the island is a walker’s paradise. The island is completed with its central distillery, which naturally makes the island paradise for whisky enthusiasts.

The distillery is the heart of the Jura community, and not only is the whisky a source of island pride, but it’s also the assurance of further generations’ prosperity. As the island is so small, there is a great sense of unity – Jura has one road, one village, one pub, one distillery, so the Diurachs (the term for the Jura residents) is a tightknit community.

The distillery has been through quite a few iterations through the years. It was originally founded in 1810 by Laird Archibald Campbell. The Campbell of Jura family remained owners of the distillery until 1853 when Norman Buchanan briefly took over and then sold to J & K Orr in 1867. The distillery was sold another couple of times, and it actually fell into disrepair in the 1880s and was promptly restored, but by 1901 it was once again disused and dismantled.

The Jura distillery as we know it today was brought back to life between 1960-1963 when Robin Fletcher and Tony Riley-Smith in collaboration with Charles Mackinlay & Co. rebuilt it. The re-opening revived the island’s community, and it also manifested itself into a true community spirit.

In 1995 Whyte & Mackay took over Jura, and they’re still in charge, although Emperador Distillers Inc. has been the parent company since 2014.

The Jura Collection

The collection consists of three ranges: The Signature Series, Travel Exclusive and Rare & Limited. The Jura expressions not only reveal sweetness and a slight smokiness, but they’re also expressions of the island. Jura has a distinct microclimate, and it’s not exactly an easy climate to produce whisky in, but Jura does. It’s a two way street between Jura and its whisky – Jura makes the whisky, but the whisky also makes Jura.

The Signature Series showcases a range of distinctive single malts defined by delicate smoky notes and their sweet sherry cask finish:

• Jura Journey
• Jura 10 Year Old
• Jura 12 Year Old
• Jura Seven Wood
• Jura 18 Year Old
• Jura Aged 21 Years – Tide

Jura Seven Wood displays true ingenuity, and as its name indicates it was finished in seven different wood casks. This is demonstrated in the multi-layered flavour profile, but it also showcases the remarkable ingenuity prominent in the Jura residents: The distillery and the Jura community thrive because of their innate ability to reimagine and reinvent.

This very complex single malt is created by seven separate oak wood casks: First-fill ex-bourbon American White Oak, Vosges, Bertranges, Jupilles, Allier, Tronçais and Limousin.

Married together they present an aromatic nose of ginger spice, coffee with a hint of milk chocolate, while the palate is treated to candied orange, caramelised peach, liquorice, and there’s a hint of smoke and sea.

The Travel Exclusives is a collection of expressions, which combine subtle smoke with aged Ximénez sherry casks:

• Jura The Sound
• Jura The Road
• Jura The Bay
• Jura The Loch
• Jura The Paps
• Jura Aged 21 Years - Time

As the range’s name suggests the single malts are of course exclusive to travel retailers. The expressions’ names are descriptive of the landscape, and so as a whole, this range tells the story of Jura. Both the island and the distillery.

Jura The Paps is a 19-year-old single malt. It matured for 19 years in American oak casks and was then finished in Pedro Ximénez casks, which previously casked 40-year-old sherries. This expression has its name from the three mountains: The Sacred Mountain, The Mountain of the sound and The Mountain of Gold. These make out The Paps of Jura, and from the island’s heart, they tower over the landscape.

Jura The Paps’ aroma is a fusion of balsamic, ginger cake and vanilla. Its palate is characterised by fig sirup, roasted walnuts and spiced pear.

Within the Rare & Limited range are Jura’s most extraordinary expressions of their old and rare stocks, which have been perfected over many years. The range currently entails:

• Jura Rare Vintage 1988
• Jura Rare Vintage 1989
• Jura 28 Year Old
• Jura Two-One-Two

Jura Two-One-Two is the newest expression to the range. It’s matured in ex-bourbon white oak casks for 13 years and then finished in Chinkapin oak casks, and it celebrates the roughly 212 Diurachs, which reside on the island of Jura. It offers a nose of creamy toffee, cinnamon spice and lemon cake, and the mouth will detect sherbet, roasted pistachios and poached pears.

Beyond these three ranges, Jura also has an extensive back catalogue of expressions. Jura single malts are truly one of a kind. While in close proximity to Islay there’s really no comparison – Jura’s style is more akin to Highland single malts, but there are few similarities here as well. Jura is unique, and collectors will know how their collection is incomplete without Jura’s presence.