Canadian whisky, made different.
made together.

Crafted on Vancouver Island with Scottish tradition, wild Pacific terroir, and the backing of 700 whisky lovers from coast to coast.

Vancouver Island

The island is the ingredient

Macaloney's is one of a rare breed of island distilleries. Our home on Vancouver Island isn't just a location. It's an active participant in every bottle we produce. Mineral-rich water feeds our mash tun. Salt-laden Pacific air circulates through our cask warehouses. And the ancient peat bogs and wild kelp forests along our coastline provide flavours you simply can't find anywhere else.

This is Canadian whisky rooted in a very specific place, where old-growth rainforest meets the Pacific Ocean and the terroir shapes the spirit as much as the craft does.

It's the kind of whisky that could only come from here.

A New Chapter

A new chapter. The same spirit.

In 2025, Macaloney's entered a new era.

Margaret Rygiel joined as CEO. A first-generation Canadian, daughter of Polish immigrants, a die hard Maple Leafs fan (she insisted we put that in), and someone who's spent her career building beloved consumer brands across the country. Before Macaloney's, Margaret led national sales and operations for brands at MondelΔ“z International and Wilton Brands. But what drew her to this distillery wasn't a spreadsheet. It was the first sip. Margaret describes our Sugar Kelp Whisky as "an evening beach bonfire just before the stars appear." Our Harvest Coast reminds her of "the first time I drove from Nanaimo to Tofino, surrounded by towering trees that hold secrets." That's who she is. Someone who experiences whisky through the lens of this country, its landscapes, and its people.

You'll find her at the distillery bar most days, chatting with visitors. Or at a local restaurant down the road. Or hosting a tasting for neighbours who've never tried single malt before. Margaret leads with the door wide open, because she believes a great distillery should feel like the best gathering place in town. She changes her high heels for sneakers when in the production area and will ask to take your picture for social media simply because it brings her joy to share the moment.

She brings a clear vision: take everything that makes this distillery extraordinary, the island, the craft, the community, and share it with more people, in more ways. More events. More partnerships. More connection. More community. More reasons to come through the door.

Margaret leads a growing team of talented people from right here in our community. From our tasting room staff to our production crew, Macaloney's is powered by Vancouver Islanders who care deeply about what goes into every bottle.

Our founder Graeme Macaloney remains where he's always been happiest. In the distillery, working the stills, experimenting with new cask combinations, and pushing the boundaries of what Canadian single malt can be. His craft built the foundation. The team around him is building what comes next.

New leadership. The same uncompromising whisky, and a commitment to making Macaloney's a place where everyone belongs.

Margaret Rygiel, CEO of Macaloney's Distillery

Margaret Rygiel, CEO of Macaloney's Distillery.

The Craft

World-class technique, Canadian soul

Our distillery was built to produce whisky at the highest level. Hand-hammered Forsyth's copper pot stills, the same maker trusted by Scotland's greatest distilleries. Traditional mashing and fermentation techniques refined over centuries. Cask sourcing from the world's finest cooperages: Kentucky bourbon barrels, Spanish Oloroso and Pedro XimΓ©nez sherry, Portuguese red wine barriques.

The knowledge behind our process draws from the best of global whisky-making tradition. But what goes into the still, the finest Canadian barley and pure island water, and what comes out is unmistakably ours.

Over 29 distinct expressions and counting. Each one a reflection of this place and the people who make it.

The Peat Project

Exploring what Canadian peat can do

Peat-smoking is an ancient art practised by only a handful of distilleries worldwide. We built the world's first purpose-designed peating soaker-smoker right here on Vancouver Island and started asking questions nobody else was asking.

What happens when you smoke with Washington peat versus Scottish Islay peat? What does peat hand-dug from the bogs near Sooke taste like? What if you infuse local Pacific sugar kelp into the peat itself?

The Peat Project is our ongoing experiment in terroir and merroir, the taste of the land and the sea. We source peat from Washington State, Islay in Scotland, and right here on Vancouver Island near Sooke, with our first Sooke peat expression coming soon. Every release is a snapshot of a specific place, a specific coastline, a specific combination of smoke and earth and ocean. It's the kind of whisky that could only come from here.

The Macaloney's team hand-harvesting peat from the bogs near Sooke on Vancouver Island

Hand-harvesting peat from the bogs near Sooke, Vancouver Island.

Come taste the island

Visit our distillery and tasting room in Saanich, just outside Victoria. Take a tour, try a flight, or just grab a pint from our onsite brewery. We're open Wednesday to Sunday.

Book a Visit Shop Whiskies

Capacity

Main Dining Area: 75
Outside Patio: 75
Free Parking: 20 large spaces

Driving Distance

From Downtown Victoria: 10 km
From Airport: 18 km
From B.C. Ferries Terminal: 24 km
From Duncan: 60 km
From Cruise Ships: 12 km

Hours & Dates

Year Round
Wed, Thur, Fri, Sat, Sun
12:00 PM – 09:00 PM

Friends of Macaloney's

TERROIR

Free

All things Macaloney's, from the ground up.

  • First-to-know on all new releases (24-hour early access before public)
  • Monthly Friends Dispatch delivered by email
  • Invitations to ticketed tastings and distillery events
  • Birthday dram at the distillery
Join Now

MERROIR

$95/year

For our salty friends who want more than a taste.

  • Everything in Terroir
  • 10% member pricing on all bottles, year-round
  • 48-hour early access on every release
  • Quarterly Flavor Files (tasting notes, ingredient deep-dives, cask profiles)
  • Complimentary distillery tour annually, with a guest
  • Priority event booking
Join Now

ARBOIR

$495/year

Our insider membership for characters who want to season with us.

Limited Membership

  • Everything in Merroir
  • First access to every release (72-hour window before Merroir)
  • Guaranteed allocation on Arboir-only single casks (2-3 per year)
  • Welcome kit: 4 Glencairns, branded merch, welcome bottle, numbered member certificate
  • 3 complimentary club events per year
  • Annual private Cask Library evening with Margaret and the distillery team
  • One private distillery room booking per year
  • Members-only surprise drops
Join Now