The results are highly regarded as they are independently audited by a panel of experts and judged live in a rigorously assessed blind tasting event.

Working with specialist spirits branding agency, Stranger & Stranger, the ‘Social Distillery’ has created something which is the envy of many. They wanted to produce something which depicts the truly stunning scenery found on the island – and what a job they’ve done! We’ve had a number of obstacles to overcome over the years, in particular when it came to establishing the distillery on the island. As mentioned, our distillery is based in West Hynish in Tiree, which is one of the most remote corners of the island (on an already remote island!). Distillers from across Scotland have been selected, with those on the picturesque Hebridean island of Tiree offering up one of the festival’s most far flung gins.

20. Glaswegin

In the highly sought-after taste competition, 11 Gold Medals were presented with Edinburgh Gin collecting two gold medals.

There are many theories as to where the name Tiree is derived. Professor William J Watson, who published The Celtic Place Names of Scotland in 1926, argues that the second element of Tir-iodh is likely to be Heeth, a name from the Iron Age or earlier which is not Gaelic, possibly not even Celtic. More common theories have suggested that the name derives from ‘Tir-iodh’ which means ‘land of corn’, or possibly ‘Tir-I’ the land or granary of Iona. Tiree Whisky Company is the producer of Tyree Gin and Hebridean Pink Gin, both of which are handcrafted and bottled on the Inner Hebridean Isle of Tiree. Known as Tyree and not Tiree is another nod to the island’s history, as Ian explains: “Tyree was a historical form of spelling for the island while the modern spelling of Tiree first appeared on a map of Scotland by John & Frederic Tallis in 1851.” Creating a whisky for Tiree Music FestivalThe ultimate award, Scottish Gin Distillery of the Year, was presented for a second year in a row to North Uist Distillery. They also collected the award for Best New Product of the Year for their Downpour Coast & Croft Gin. We are very proud to have achieved one of our goals of establishing a distillery in Tiree, the first since 1801. On an island with a fragile economy, it is a great feeling to revive an industry that has been dormant for such a long time. The island of Tiree is the most westerly of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. It is a relatively low-lying island with an area of 7,834 hectares and a population of around 650.

The Duke responded three years later by asking about "the most effectual methods of crushing distillery". In 1794, the Duke chided the chamberlain, accusing him of allowing "the tenants to drink their barley" rather than paying rent. In the build up to TMF 10, Stuart and Daniel - the festival organisers - got in touch with myself and Alain with an idea to mark the anniversary. We decided to source a cask from Speyside, and the whisky went into cask around the same time as plans for the first ever Tiree Music Festival were taking shape. Now, ten years on, about 380 bottles are available to celebrate the milestone,” Ian says. The main difficulties have been connected with the remoteness of our distillery and the options available to us in such a remote location. Thankfully things are now going to plan! The whisky was named after a ship that ran aground off the shores of the island and it has cases of whisky - a story similar to Whisky Galore,” says Ian. We launched that at the Tiree Homecoming and only bottled 230 which all sold out. That was the first step - to publicise the whisky company and to let people know what we were doing.” Starting with gin Picture: Tyree Gin FacebookThis award-winning gin was the brainchild of two whisky distillery managers who also happened to be gin enthusiasts. Their aim was to create a spirit that would appeal to seasoned gin drinks but also entice a new market of non-gin drinkers and convert them to gin. And so they set about creating a gin that would have subtle fruitiness and a soft creamy finish. Drawing upon their joint experience of over 25 years in the distilling industry, the long experiment began using as much locally grown botanicals as possible. This was until island locals, Alian Campbell and Ian Smith formed the Tiree Whisky Company to preserve and promote the island’s whisky heritage. Following on from the success of their first spirit, The Cairnsmuir – a limited edition 19-Year-Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky, Tyree Gin was launched in 2017. A gin to reflect the island Tiree, long known as Tìr an Eòrna 'the land of barley', was an island whose swollen population could barely feed itself, an island that had exhausted its reserves of peat and had to rely on expensive imports of coal. In addition, the long-lived eighth duke held a policy of keeping Tiree alcohol-free (the island’s licence had been removed in 1848 and wasn’t reintroduced until 1950).