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Own a Raasay Distillery Whisky Cask: Big,
Small or Shared

Choose between one of our small, full size, or shared Raasay whisky casks via Caskshare, and become part of the Isle of Raasay Distillery story.

Illicit distilling is recorded on Raasay until circa 1850, and more than 160 years later, whisky has finally returned.

Every drop of spirit from your Isle of Raasay Distillery cask will be distilled and matured on the island, before becoming some of the first legal Isle of Raasay Single Malt in Scotch whisky history!

Build Your CaskCaskshareLearn More

Isle of Raasay Distillery Spirit

Our whisky casks are filled with your choice of peated or unpeated Raasay spirit at an alcoholic strength of 63.5%.

All of our spirit is produced on the island using only Scottish barley, distillers’ yeast, and mineral-rich water, sourced and filtered direct from our distillery well.

The manganese from our well water is ideal for yeast development, which, combined with long fermentations of up to 5 days, develops sweet and dark fruit characteristics in our spirit before it even touches the oak of a cask.

Build Your Cask FAQs

Isle of Raasay Whisky Casks

Build a cask to best suit your tastes with our range of oak varieties, sizes, and your choice of either peated or unpeated Raasay spirit. Our range of full size first-fill whisky casks available includes:

  • Ex-Bourbon Whiskey Barrel – Four Roses (190 Litre)
  • Ex-Tennessee Whiskey Barrel – Jack Daniels (190 Litre)
  • Ex-High Rye Whiskey Barrel – Woodford Reserve (190 Litre)
  • Ex-French Bordeaux Red Wine Barrique (220 Litre)
  • Ex-Manzanilla Sherry Hogs Head (250 Litre)

We also have bespoke 30 litre casks available that are made from ex-Speyside whisky oak casks.

Build Your Cask FAQs

How It Works

Your very own Isle of Raasay Whisky will all be distilled, matured and bottled on our small Hebridean island. Why not invest in a cask today?

1. Build Your Cask

Choose your preferred cask size and type, and whether you would like it filled with our peated or unpeated spirit.

2. The Paperwork

We will send you our full terms and conditions for you to sign along with your cask owner’s certificate.

3. Time to Mature

Your cask will mature in Raasay’s heady island air for 3 years in our small casks and up to 10 years in our full size casks.

4. Visit Your Cask

We run cask events where cask owners can visit their cask, tour the distillery and sample their maturing spirit.

5. Bottling

We will then bottle your spirit at standard industry bottling costs*. Your bottles can be delivered to you or collected from the distillery.

Small Scotch Whisky Cask

Small Scotch Whisky CaskPrice: £999
Volume: 30 Litres*
Expected Bottles: Approximately 40*
Spirit Types: Peated or unpeated spirit
Cask Type: Ex-Speyside Scotch whisky oak casks
Maturation: Matured on Raasay for 3 years & then bottled*
Keep The Cask: You can keep your emptied 30 litre cask once the liquid has been bottled

Choose Small Cask (£999) FAQs

Full Size Scotch Whisky Cask

Full Size Scotch Whisky CaskPrice: £5,000
Volume: 190 Litres – 250 Litres*
Expected Bottles: Approximately 250-300*
Spirit Types: Peated or unpeated spirit
Cask Types: First-fill ex-bourbon whiskey barrel (Four Roses), ex-high rye whiskey barrel (Woodford Reserve), ex-Bordeaux red wine barriques, Ex-Manzanilla Sherry Hogs Head, Ex-Tennessee Whiskey Barrel (Jack Daniels).
Maturation: Matured on Raasay for up to 10 years, during which time the liquid can be bottled* at your discretion

Choose Full Size Cask (£5,000) FAQs

The ‘45 Cask Offering

Some of the first ‘45 cask ever filled at the Isle of Raasay Distillery were American oak bourbon barrels. These historic bourbon casks, rich in sweet vanilla and butterscotch flavours, are now being made available as part of our Raasay Rising cask offer.

Your purchase entitles you to come and fill your cask personally while spending the night in our whisky hotel. If you cannot make it to Raasay to fill your cask, we can fill it on your behalf and you can visit your sleeping single malt at a later date. You will also receive a bottle of our Inaugural Isle of Raasay Single Malt release, the same spirit that was matured in these exclusive ‘45 casks.

Learn More Order Your '45 Cask

Caskshare from £40

The Isle of Raasay Distillery is collaborating on the industry’s first ‘Casksharing’ platform with Craft Whisky Club. Caskshare helps democratise single cask whisky by offering shares in a cask of your choice for exclusive single cask bottlings that won’t ever be released publicly.

Casks Available on Caskshare

Caskshare offers the opportunity to experiment with a variety of wood types and maturation times, including former Four Roses Bourbon casks, Chinquapin virgin oak and Bordeaux red wine casks. The first cask listed on Caskshare will be bottled in 2022.

Raasay Distillery Chinkapin Oak Cask

Chinkapin Oak

A virgin Chinkapin Oak (Quercus muehlenbergii) cask filled with our spirit and stored in our island warehouse.

Ex-High Rye Raasay Distillery Cask

Ex-High Rye

An ex-high rye Woodford Reserve cask filled with our spirit and stored in our island warehouse.

Ex-Bordeaux Raasay Distillery Cask

Ex-Bordeaux

An ex-Bordeaux Chateau Margaux cask filled with our spirit and stored in our island warehouse.

Ex-Bourbon Raasay Distillery Cask

Ex-Bourbon

An ex-Bourbon Four Roses cask filled with our spirit and stored in our island warehouse.

Ex-Manzanilla Raasay Distillery Cask

Ex-Manzanilla

An ex-Manzanilla sherry cask filled with our spirit and stored in our island warehouse.

Ex-Speyside Raasay Distillery Cask

Ex-Speyside

A custom ex-Speyside small cask. This cask will be bottled at 3 year old.

Caskshare (from £40) Gift a Caskshare Learn More

Request More Information
Buy a Small Cask
Buy a Full Size Cask
Caskshare

Raasay Distillery Casks FAQs

Cask Filling Strength (ABV)

All of our casks are filled with Raasay Distillery spirit at an alcoholic strength of 63.5% ABV.

Peated or Unpeated Spirit

When building you cask you can choose either our peated or unpeated spirit. Not all cask types will be available in with both peated and unpeated spirit due to stock availability.

Type of Casks Available

Full Size Scotch Whisky Casks
First-fill Ex-Bourbon Whiskey Barrel (Four Roses)
Ex-High Rye Whiskey Barrel (Woodford Reserve)
Ex-French Bordeaux Red Wine Barrique
Litre Ex-Manzanilla Sherry Hogs Head
Ex-Tennessee Whiskey Barrel (Jack Daniels)

Small Scotch Whisky Casks
Our smaller 30 litre casks are ex-Speyside Scotch whisky oak casks. It is our opinion that using first fill sherry, bourbon or virgin oak for our 30 litre cask would over-power our Isle of Raasay spirit in three years’ time.

Maturation & Finishing

Once filled, all of our casks are matured on Raasay in our island warehouses. To be called Scotch Whisky, spirit must be aged in Scotland for a minimum of 3 years in an oak cask.

Full Size Scotch Whisky Casks
Our full size Scotch whisky casks include up to 10 years of warehouse storage. After 3 years of maturation, the cask owner can decide at what point they would like to bottle their whisky.

Small Scotch Whisky Casks
Our small 30 litre casks include 3 years of warehouse storage. We will then bottle your cask on your behalf, charged to you at then current industry rates. We strongly recommend that you bottle your 30 litre cask after three years. Due to the increase surface to volume ratio in a 30 litre cask there is considerably more evaporation (Angel’s share) and much greater influence on the flavour of the spirit from the oak cask.

Finishing
We do not currently offer any additional finishing options for cask purchases.

Can 30 Litre Casks Be Matured More Than 3 Years?

We strongly recommend that you bottle your 30 litre cask after three years. Due to the increase surface to volume ratio in a 30 litre cask there is considerably more evaporation (angel’s share) and much greater influence on the flavour of the spirit from the oak cask.

To discuss further with our team please complete the form below.

Labelling

During the bottling process, whisky from your cask will be labeled under the Raasay Distillery brand by default. Any other specific label text requests or requirements may be considered, but would need to be arrange by prior written agreement only and may incur further additional costs.

Bottling

The cost of bottling is not included in the cost of your cask. We will arrange bottling with the casks owner at an agreed cost prior to bottling based on industry standard rates at the time of bottling.

All of our bottling will take place on site at the distillery. The water used to reduce your spirit down to bottling strength is the same water used throughout our process, sourced from our Celtic well on-site.

Visiting Casks & Cask Samples

Visiting Casks
We will be arranging special events for casks owners in the future, allowing them to visit their casks in our island warehouses. Please join our Slàinte Club where we will keep members up to date with information on upcoming events.

View Upcoming Events

Cask Samples
Cask sample tastings will be available at our cask visiting events only.

View Upcoming Events

What Happens After I’ve Ordered My Cask?

Once you have purchased your cask we will provide a full terms and condition document by email for you to sign and return to us. This will document will also act as your proof of ownership.

Number of Bottles per Cask

The number of bottles produced from a cask will vary depend on the angels’ share – the natural evaporation and loss of spirit that occurs during maturation, as well as the maturation period, bottle size and bottling strength.

We’ve included some estimates below based on bottling 70CL bottles at 46% ABV. These numbers are approximate and will vary based on the the above factors.

30 Litre Casks: Approximate Bottles: 40
190 Litre Casks: Approximate Bottles: 250
220 Litre Casks: Approximate Bottles: 270
250 Litre Casks: Approximate Bottles: 300

Are There Other Additional Costs?

There are additional costs involved over and above the price paid for the casks itself which include:

  • Bottling
  • UK Duty
  • Taxes
  • Delivery

See our separate FAQs for more information on each of these costs.

Duty & Tax

Duty
HMRC charge Duty on liquid based on the percentage of pure alcohol. This is measured in alcohol per volume (ABV).

VAT
UK value added tax (VAT) is currently 20%. Both Duty and VAT are due after your cask has been bottled and the finished goods are removed from our bonded warehouse.

Other Taxes
Different rates of Duty apply throughout the EU and the rest of the world.

Tax Variations
All taxes are subject to change by the UK government.

Duty & Tax Examples

The below examples are based on what we believe to be the worst case future scenario. The figures used in our examples are all subject to change.

30 Litre Casks
Based on current UK duty rates of £28.74 (valid at February 2019) per litre of pure alcohol, a 30 litre cask when filled at 63.5% will hold 19.05 litres of pure alcohol, equating to a total of £547.50 alcohol duty. However, these rates are subject to change and the figure does not account for variables such as the angels’ share, which is the natural evaporation and subsequent loss of spirit that occurs during maturation in the cask.

For approximately 40 bottles – not including any potential evaporation in order to offset potential UK duty increases – we estimate that including bottling costs charged at standard industry rates, UK duty and VAT at 20%, the total payable will be around £2,009.2 in three years’ time, which equates to £50.23 per bottle including the original cask price of £999.

190 Litre Casks
Based on current UK duty rates of £28.74 (valid at February 2019) per litre of pure alcohol, a 190 litre cask when filled at 63.5% will hold 120.65 litres of pure alcohol, equating to a total of £3467.48 alcohol duty. However, these rates are subject to change and the figure does not account for variables such as the angels’ share, which is the natural evaporation and subsequent loss of spirit that occurs during maturation in the cask.

For approximately 250 bottles – not including any potential evaporation in order to offset potential UK duty increases – we estimate that including bottling costs at standard industry rates, UK duty and VAT at 20%, the total payable will be around £11,365 in ten years’ time, which equates to £45.46 per bottle including the original cask price of £5,000.

Delivery & Collection

Delivery costs are not included in the cost of your cask and will be charged at standard rates at the time of bottling.

Single Malt Scotch Whisky can only be exported from Scotland in bottles, so your cask will be bottled by us on Raasay and then export to your country.

UK & Europe
Delivery will be possible to UK and European countries by road. Delivery costs will be dependant on the delivery address.

United States of America
We are working with our US distributor to have nominated retailers in selected States (currently NY, MA, IL, CA) to allow us to ship the bottles from your cask to you. Please contact us for more information on shipping to the US.

Other International
If you would like to have your bottles delivered to an address outside of the UK or Europe, please contact us.

Collections
Bottles can also be collected from the distillery by prior arrangement at a mutually agreed and suitable time. All costs of collection are the responsibility of the cask owner.

Capital Gains

Whisky purchased in a cask in the UK that is for personal use (eg. a gift for family, a wedding present for a friend etc.) is considered exempt from Capital Gains Tax. This is because in the UK, Capital Gains Tax is not applicable to whisky as it regarded as a “tangible”, “wasting” asset. On realisation of the asset you would not be expect to pay Capital Gains Tax.

View Cask Terms & Conditions

You can view our full terms & conditions for cask purchases by clicking on the link below.

View Terms & Conditions

Require More Information?

To request more information on our cask offering, please complete the form below. A member of the Raasay Distillery team will then be in touch to answer any queries.

Alternatively, please feel free to contact our team on +44 (0) 1478 470178 or email info@raasaydistillery.com

Require More Information? To request more information on our cask offering, please complete the form below.
A member of the Raasay Distillery team will then be in touch to answer any queries.

Request More Information
Buy a Small Cask
Buy a Full Size Cask
Caskshare

Request More Information on Casks

To request more information on our cask offering, please complete the form below. A member of the Raasay Distillery team will then be in touch to answer any queries.

Alternatively, please feel free to contact our team on +44 (0) 1478 470178 or email info@raasaydistillery.com

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Stay up to Date with Our Cask News

Join our FREE Slàinte whisky club to stay up to date with our latest cask & bottling news, as well as other updates, promotions and upcoming events from Raasay Distillery.

Sign up now to receive:

  • £5 off your first online whisky order of £50 or more
  • £5 off a 70cl bottle of whisky purchased from our distillery shop
  • 10% off distillery tours
  • The chance to pre-order Raasay Distillery & other R&B Distillers whiskies before anyone else
  • Member-exclusive offers and discounts
  • Free WiFi when visiting Raasay Distillery
  • News and updates

Your Slàinte Club welcome email includes details on how to take advantage of your exclusive benefits, including a discount code to enjoy £5 off of your first online whisky order over £50.

Find out more and view terms & conditions on our Slàinte Club page.

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* The volume & number of bottles produced will depend on the angels’ share/evaporation, maturation period, bottle size and bottling strength. Prices quoted exclude future bottling costs, tax, UK Duty, and delivery costs. Raasay Distillery will bottle at standard industry rates. Please ensure you have read our terms and conditions prior to purchase.