Christopher Coates and Millie Milliken | Bowmore

Please welcome whisky writers, Christopher Coates and Millie Milliken

Read Time 4 Mins

The festive season wouldn’t be the same without familiar faces — and that’s why we’d like you to meet two of our most passionate advocates. Whisky writers, judges, and long-time champions of Bowmore, Christopher Coates (@quercus_alba) and Millie Milliken (@millie_milliken) have been visiting our Islay home since they began their careers in whisky, and enjoying a glass or two of our expressive, multi-dimensional spirit for even longer.

To celebrate a new chapter of My Bowmore, we have invited Christopher and Millie to share their captivating stories, whisky recommendations, hosting inspiration, and gifting tips. Together, they will explore some of the best ways to enjoy Bowmore with those closest to you this winter.

You'll hear from Christopher and Millie again soon. But first, allow us to introduce you to them.

Whisky Writer Christopher Coates

About Your Hosts

Christopher Coates

Hailing from Highland Perthshire, Christopher has been writing about whisky and photographing distilleries for more than a decade. As editor-at-large for Whisky Magazine and past chair of judges for the World Whiskies Awards, Christopher’s career has taken him from Edinburgh to Tokyo, Jerez to Portland, and Bardstown to Bowmore as he explored the world of whisky. This time last year he directed and hosted the short film Bowmore: The Making of A Legend — How Islay’s Oldest Distillery Became A Scotch Whisky Icon, an exploration of our distillery’s long history, principal characters, and captivating craft. When it comes to Bowmore, Christopher is especially drawn to the tropical notes often found in our aged and rare expressions, though lately he’s been paying particular attention to our 100% floor-malted spirit.

Currently Drinking
Bowmore Fèis Ìle 2025 Edition
8 Years Old

“I’ve been especially enjoying this year’s release for Fèis Ìle, Islay’s festival of music and malt. Chosen to celebrate the most important time in the Islay calendar, this spirit was distilled entirely from Bowmore’s own floor-malted barley — marking it as a rare spirit from birth. Whether you’re captivated by its eight-year maturation in a PX sherry-seasoned Spanish oak cask, the nuanced complexity and mouthfeel delivered by the hand-turned malt, its high ABV, or its scarcity, there’s a lot to love about this dram. It also happens to be absolutely delicious.”

Bowmore Feis Ile Bottle

What to expect from Christopher

“For me, tasting is only one part of enjoying whisky, and I love exploring all the facets of its story. Whether it is social history, geology, botany, farming, engineering, economics, coopering, chemistry, or culture, all these things and more have shaped what’s in our glass today. While you don’t need to know anything about these topics to enjoy a dram, I believe exploring how they intersect with distilleries can help deepen our appreciation of the spirit, guide us as we build our collections, and bring greater meaning to the malts we share, ultimately helping to create memorable moments with those closest to us. I’ll touch on a few of these areas while highlighting my favourite old and rare Bowmore whiskies before offering a few pointers on how to go about choosing and gifting a high-aged expression."

Whisky Writer Millie Milliken

Millie Milliken

An award-winning spirits writer and author with over a decade in the publishing industry (with roles held at The Good Food Guide, SquareMeal and Imbibe), Millie is a regular contributor for the likes of Club Oenologique, Decanter, and The Standard, writing all things spirits, cocktails, and hospitality. She also works for the non-profit OurWhisky Foundation which supports women+ in the global whisky industry, and is a proud patron of The Drinks Trust charity, all while running her own tasting events and writing a pub-focused newsletter, Pint-sized. When it comes to Bowmore, Millie is a keen advocate for pairing our expressions with food, especially our Bowmore 12 Year Old with oysters. She also finds the folklore, history and setting around Bowmore beguiling — for her, storytelling is what brings this distillery to life.

Currently Drinking
Bowmore Frank Quietly
32 Year Old No Corners

“I was very lucky to get my hands on a small sample of this limited release, which features the devilish artwork of Scottish comicbook artist Frank Quietly. Matured in ex-Bourbon American oak hogsheads, followed by two years spent in rare ‘rose oak’ Essencia barriques, this whisky is heady with manuka honey, burning incense, roasted hazelnuts, sticky dates and an enveloping florality."

Illustration against blue background.

What to expect from Millie

“While process, flavour and quality are, of course, so important when it comes to the whisky brands I recommend, for me, how we actually engage with these very special spirits is what makes them so enchanting. So, on My Bowmore, I’ll be setting the tone with a piece about how to host with Bowmore in mind. As we move into 2026, I’ll be writing and talking about Bowmore’s myriad expressions through the lens of what brings them to life the most — where to drink them, the stories that have shaped them, and what they tell us about the place in which they are made.”

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