Bunnahabhain is famously the unpeated Islay, or at least it was. For most of its history, from its founding in 1881 through the long Highland Distillers years, the distillery produced exclusively unpeated spirit, a deliberate stylistic choice that set it apart from its southern neighbours and made it an essential component of the Famous Grouse and Black Bottle blends. Toiteach — Gaelic for 'smoky' — marked the first peated expression to appear in the distillery's core range, and represented a cautious but significant rewriting of the house identity.
Introduced under Burn Stewart ownership and developed by Ian MacMillan, Toiteach is bottled non-chill-filtered at 46%, in keeping with the distillery's modern policy. The peat level is restrained by Islay standards — this is not Laphroaig or Ardbeg territory — and the whisky leans on the classic Bunnahabhain coastal character rather than abandoning it for medicinal smoke.
The nose opens with soft peat smoke and brine, backed by dried fruit, toasted malt and a trace of sherry from the cask mix. The palate is gentle and well integrated: smoke, honeyed malt, walnut and sea salt, with a ripple of spice for structure. The finish is medium-long, smoky and nutty, with lingering salinity and dry oak.
Toiteach is not an attempt to out-peat the south of the island. It is Bunnahabhain looking across the Sound at Jura, tipping its hat, and returning to its own fire. For drinkers who enjoy the distillery's restraint but want a measure of Islay smoke, it remains one of the most thoughtful peated entries in the island's modern repertoire.
