Only 522 bottles of the limited edition Lagavulin 1991 will be released, with the £580,000 expected to be raised from sales of the £1,494 bottles being divided between seven charities on the island.
The project will see £310,000 donated to Islay Heritage to help build a story of the island's past based on its archaeological sites.
The Finlaggan Trust, which maintains the historical home of the Lord of the Isles, should also receive £60,000.
The Lagavulin 200 Legacy will also make further contributions to the local swimming pool, cyber cafe and arts and festival organisations, as well as a new partnership with the RSPB to restore and conserve peatlands on the island.
Picture: PA
Bottles of the special release can only be purchased via a ballot on The Whisky Exchange that launched on the 31st December, with bottle No. 1 being auctioned separately to raise even more charitable funds, and one bottle being donated to each of the Diageo Archive and our partners at The Whisky Exchange respectively.
Georgette Crawford, Distillery Manager at Lagavulin, who believes the new whisky is "truly memorable in its complexity", said she was proud that the distillery was giving back to Islay: "The range and ambition of the projects we are supporting is something that as an Ileach I feel very deeply about and I am so proud to see the proceeds of our iconic whisky benefit the local community in such an unforgettable way.”
Nick Morgan, Head of Whisky Outreach added: “We all work in Scotch because we love it.
"Lagavulin is a whisky and a place that stirs us all both personally and professionally. Being able to launch a bottling like this that will have a deep impact on the magical island of Islay for generations to come is a career highlight.
"This is just one way in which we want to express our affection for the people who have welcomed us (Ileachs and others) to work and live on Islay for the last 200 years.”
Sukhinder Singh, co-founder of The Whisky Exchange, says of the bottling: “As soon as we heard about this special project, we wanted to be involved. For me, Lagavulin is one of the most amazing whiskies from Scotland, and the 16 year old in particular is a personal all-time favourite.
"We look forward to working with our friends at Diageo to secure a lasting legacy for the whole of Islay through this historic, one-off limited release.”
