Arran Machrie Moor

About the Arran Machrie Moor

Arran Machrie Moor is a peated single malt whisky from the Isle of Arran, in Scotland. The distillery stands just south of Lochranza, at the northern tip of the island. It goes into the bottle at 46% ABV, without chill filtration and without added colouring. The name belongs to a real place, a windswept peat bog on the west coast. That moor sets the tone for the whole dram. Stone circles from the Bronze Age stand across the moor itself. One of them carries the name Fingal's Cauldron Seat. A hole cut through that stone is where the giant warrior Fingal supposedly tethered his dog, Bran. Lochranza Distillery opened in 1995 and later used this spirit as its first peated release. All peated production moved to Lagg, the sister distillery, in 2019. Citrus arrives first, with orange peel sitting over a low puff of smoke. The palate is robust and full of fresh fruit. Orchard fruit and grilled pineapple rest on a malty, earthy base. Dry vegetative notes of grass and hay run underneath the sweet side. Vanilla builds through the finish, creamy at first, then edged with sea salt and a medicinal tang. Most of the core range from this distillery is unpeated, built on bright fruit and light malt. This bottling breaks that pattern and stays gentler than an Islay smoke bomb. The peat sits behind the fruit rather than in front of it. Arran Machrie Moor also marks a closed chapter, since Lochranza no longer makes smoky spirit. Anyone curious about island peat with a soft touch starts here.