Events

Join us for National Drink Beer Day on Sept 28th and try one of our many craft brews!

Friends, whisky lovers, and peat-curious souls: this is one you won't want to miss.

We're thrilled to welcome James Wills of Kilchoman Distillery to Merlins Rest Pub for an intimate, guided tasting of one of Islay's most exciting distilleries. Kilchoman is a true farm distillery on Islay's rugged west coast, where barley is grown, malted, distilled, matured, and bottled right on site. That's a rare thing in Scotch whisky, and you can taste the difference.

James will walk us through five expressions, each showing a different side of Kilchoman's character:

🌾 Rockside: A tribute to the farm fields at Rockside, where Kilchoman grows its own Islay barley. This is terroir in a glass. 🌊 Machir Bay: The flagship, named for the stunning beach just below the distillery. It brings gentle peat smoke with a fresh coastal lift. 🍷 ImpEx Evolution 6 Year Old Ruby Port Cask: A special bottling finished in Ruby Port casks. Expect rich red-fruit sweetness wrapped around that signature Islay smoke. 💪 Batch Strength: Kilchoman turned up a notch, with bold, concentrated flavor at a higher strength. 🔥 Sanaig Cask Strength: A deeper, darker, sherry-kissed Kilchoman bottled at full cask strength for those who like their dram with a bit of thunder.

Whether you're a seasoned Islay devotee or just starting your whisky journey, this is a rare chance to hear the story straight from the source, ask questions, and taste side by side with someone who knows these whiskies inside and out.

📅 Date: October 13, 2026 ⏰ Time: 7 pm 📍 Merlins Rest Pub 🎟️ Tickets: 35.00 icket price will be used to off set final purchases on the evening 

Seats are limited, and these evenings always fill up fast. Grab your spot, bring a friend, and join us for a proper Islay night. Sláinte!

Indulge in dinner and a dessert on National Dessert Day!

Friends, the nights are drawing in and the whisky cabinet is calling, so join us for the first tasting of the season, a flight I've built to walk you from sunlit Highland fruit all the way to the smoky edge of Islay. We begin with the Balblair 15, a Highland beauty matured first in American oak and then finished in Spanish sherry butts, generous with orange peel, dark chocolate and warm spice. Next comes a genuine rarity, the Roseisle 14 Special Release, the oldest bottling yet from a Speyside distillery that almost never releases a single malt of its own, poured at a robust cask strength and full of baked apple, vanilla sponge and a crisp white-pepper finish. Then we shift into top gear with the brand-new Glenfiddich 16 Aston Martin F1 2026 edition, which draws on five different cask types, from Port to Oloroso to Fino, for stewed fruit, marzipan, polished leather and silky toffee. And we cross the finish line on Islay with the welcomed return of  Laphroaig 15, where maritime peat smoke, iodine and sea spray give way to a surprising sweetness of honey and toasted oak, the perfect dram to end the night. Seats are limited and these bottles won't be back, so reserve your place early and come raise a glass with us to autumn. Sláinte! 

Reminder: the 25.00 charge is a deposit the remaining amount due for the tasting will be due on the night of the event. 

🎃 HALLOWEEN AT MERLINS REST 🎃

Grab your crew, get those costumes ready, and come spend Halloween with us! 👻🍻

🎶 LIVE MUSIC WITH THE ROOT PICKERS The music kicks off at 7:30PM and we’ll be partying into the night.

🏆 COSTUME CONTEST • 10PM

We’re handing out bragging rights for:

🧙 Best Dressed 👻 Best Group 🙌 Crowd Favorite

⚠️ Want to enter? You MUST be at the pub by 9PM to sign up for the costume contest. So don’t stroll in at 9:59 dressed like the Headless Horseman and expect special treatment. 😂

🍹 We’ll also have special Halloween drink offerings available throughout the night.

📅 Friday, October 31 🎶 Root Pickers at 7:30PM 📝 Costume contest sign-up by 9PM 🏆 Costume contest at 10PM 📍 Merlins Rest Pub

Come for the music. Stay for the drinks. Dress to win. 🏆

No costume required — but where’s the fun in that?

🎃🍺💀 See you Halloween night!

Happy Holidays to all of our fans! Join us with family and friends!