Bowmore The Kinship No 1 Feis Ile 27 Year Single Islay Malt Whisky 48.1%

27 years in sherry. 366 bottles. Released at Feis Ile — Islay's biggest whisky festival. Hunter Laing's The Kinship No. 1 is the kind of bottle you open and remember precisely when and with whom.

Expert's description

Bowmore The Kinship No 1 Feis Ile 27 Year is an Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a sherry cask and bottled at 48.1%. Hunter Laing's The Kinship series is created as a tribute to Islay's distilleries and the traditions that have shaped the island's whisky. Each bottling is selected cask by cask and released in small quantities, focusing on maturity, character and provenance. The Kinship No. 1 is the first in the series — a 27-year-old Bowmore bottled specifically for Feis Ile 2017, the annual whisky festival on Islay. Selected by Jim McEwan, Islay's veteran spirit who came out of retirement as production director for Ardnahoe. Non-chill filtered, natural colour — 366 bottles at 48.1%.

Tasting notes

Nose

Complex and aged. Dark fruit, sherry sweetness and dried flowers with a hint of sea breeze and gentle, elegant smoke from Bowmore's characteristic peat.

Taste

Silky and deep. The sherry cask dominates with fig, dried plum and dark chocolate. The peat whispers in the background — present but transformed by 27 years of maturation.

Finish

Very long and luxurious. Dried fruit, warm spice and a delicate coastal smoke that slowly fades. Exceptional length for this age and ABV.

Specifications

Name: Bowmore The Kinship No 1 Feis Ile 27 Year
Distillery: Bowmore
Bottler: Hunter Laing
Region/Country: Islay, Scotland
Type: Single Islay Malt Whisky
Age: 27 years
ABV: 48.1%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Sherry cask
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Bottled: Feis Ile 2017
Number of bottles: 366
Edition: The Kinship No. 1

Flavour profile

Sherried · Aged · Peated · Complex · Feis Ile exclusive

Investment potential

High. A Feis Ile festival exclusive with only 366 bottles and 27 years of maturation. One of the rarest and most prestigious Bowmore releases in recent years.

Did you know?

Jim McEwan, who selected this cask for Hunter Laing, spent over 38 years at Bowmore before moving to Bruichladdich, then came out of retirement to help establish Ardnahoe Distillery — Islay's newest. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in Islay whisky.

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Frequently asked questions about Bowmore The Kinship No 1 Feis Ile 27 Year

What is Feis Ile and what makes owning a bottle from it special?

Feis Ile is Islay's annual whisky festival, held each May. Distilleries release exclusive festival bottlings sold only at the distillery and in very limited quantities. It is one of the most sought-after events in the whisky calendar.

Is Bowmore Kinship No 1 27 Year worth it?

As a Feis Ile exclusive with 27 years in cask, it is one of the rarest and most prestigious Bowmore releases. The flavour complexity and strictly limited provenance give it a standing that makes it well worth the investment.

What happens to the Bowmore character after 27 years?

Extraordinary transformation. The peat softens to almost a woodsmoke fragrance rather than raw peat. Fruits become deep and dried — fig, date, dark cherry. The sherry cask adds richness and texture that younger expressions simply cannot replicate.

Who is Hunter Laing?

Hunter Laing & Co. is a Glasgow-based independent bottler founded by Stewart Laing in 2013. They focus on premium single cask releases and are known for The Kinship, Old Malt Cask and Old Particular series.

What does non-chill filtered mean?

Non-chill filtered means the whisky has not been passed through cold filtration before bottling — a process that removes some flavour-active compounds. The absence of filtration preserves the natural texture and full flavour of the cask.

How does The Kinship No 1 compare to Hunter Laing's other Bowmore releases?

The Kinship No. 1 is the most prestigious Bowmore in the Kinship series — the oldest, most limited, and most directly connected to Islay's festival tradition. Later releases are excellent, but none match the provenance and rarity of this first bottle.