The 2017 edition of the Islay Festival of Music and Malt is on its way and it's very noticeable too on the island. Many folk from all over the world have arrived on Islay, many of them are return visitors. Accommodations are fully booked and the campsite at Port Mor looks as if there's not a single space left. What a comparison to a week ago. Bowmore was crowded too with hardly a parking space to find and many folk were queueing at Bowmore distillery to get their hands on a special limited festival bottling. Not sure when the queue started but it was very early morning for some, perhaps even night?

The first Saturday of the Islay Festival is traditionally Lagavulin Open day and it started off warm and humid. Last year Lagavulin celebrated their 200th anniversary which attracted many visitors to the south of Islay. This year was a bit quieter, better organised traffic wise and the atmosphere was just as pleasant as last year, not at the least due to a magnificent new band called "Tide Lines" with lead singer Robert Robertson, former band member and lead singer of Skipinnish. Various art stalls, a nice demonstration by the coopers, the burger tent, ice cream van, sea food shack and of course Lagavulin's excellent drams were the ingredients for a good time. The weather was kind as well as it stayed dry and warm for most of the day. Below are some impressions of this year's start of the Islay Festival and Lagavulin Open Day. Continue reading...

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