Celebrate our local Spirit & Beer

With three craft micro-breweries, you never need to be far from a good beer. Craft breweries use the best hops, malt and yeast to brew for taste over volume. This gives a flavoursome, complex beer with a spectrum of tastes ranging from pale ale to bitter and black stout.
 
Colonsay is the smallest island in the world with its own commercial brewery. The Colonsay Beer Company (formerly the Colonsay Brewery) was set up to guarantee a regular supply of beer for the tiny population of islanders but has proved so popular that it is now exported across Scotland. It produces three core beers - IPA, Pig’s Paradise Blonde (inspired by the patch of remote grazing where pigs would feast on wildflowers), and the brooding, malty Hangman’s Rock Dark Ale (inspired by the south cliff where executions are said to have taken place). Sample the beers on a visit to Colonsay or, even better, look out for one of the island’s regular festivals for a great all-around experience.
 
Over on Islay, award-winning beer complements the island’s legendary whisky. The mild and moist conditions produce abundant barley from which Islay Ales brew a regular range of beers and ales plus seasonal specials. All are cask or bottle conditioned, without filtering or pasteurising so that the beer continues to ferment and gain ‘condition’ before consumption. Other offerings include Kilchoman Dark or Pale with malted barley direct from Kilchoman Distillery for a smoky, peaty taste, echoing the distinctive notes of Islay’s single malts. For a winter brew, try the Kildalton Ale, a dark beer with hints of ginger and cinnamon - perfect on a crisp, cold day! You can enjoy Islay Ales in pubs and restaurants across the island and The Brewery and Visitors Centre offers guided tastings and wee tours. Visitors comment on the warm welcome, the knowledge and passion of the team, and the quality of the beers and ales. Well worth a visit.

Back on the mainland in Cairndow, Fyne Ales is a farm brewery, set on the Achadunan Estate. Originally set up in an old dairy building, the brewery was established to bring prosperity to this remote corner of Argyll. Demand soon outstripped supply and in 2014, the brewery expanded production with a brand new brewery kit in an adjoining sheep shed. The old dairy and kit remains in use as a workshop for the brewers to test ideas and create new recipes. Fyne Ales now produce a range of core beers, including IPAs and distinctive blonde, amber and dark ales. The flagship blonde ale, Jarl, is the proud holder of CAMRAs Champion Beer of Scotland 2022 award. One-offs and specials – such as the silky Chocolate and Orange Stout or the strong, warming 20th Anniversary Ale – are always popular, and often sell out in record time. Brewery tours are offered at weekends, and sampling is available all week in the Brewery Tap which has a lovely little courtyard for summer days. And no visit would be complete without a visit to the shop to buying a few cans, bottles or mini-casks to take home. You might even find some beef and venison from the farm herds!

Fans of Fyne Ales will enjoy Fynefest - a three-day celebration of beer, food and music which takes place on the Achadunan Estate in June every year.