Before the rise of Speyside, Campbeltown was the distilling capital of Scotland, home to 28 distilleries at its high-point in the 1830s. Today there are three: Springbank (which also makes a smoky malt named Longrow and an un-peated whisky named Hazelburn), Glen Scotia and Glengyle (opened 2004).

Further north, in the town of the same name, is Oban Distillery, which produces a classic light-bodied maritime make, and further north again, in Fort William, stands Ben Nevis Distillery, in the shadow of Britain’s highest mountain, once a major producer, now less well-known.