One of the first distilleries I found myself enjoying, and the first IB producer I’d ever tried, the combo shouldn’t disappoint. The sample came open a teeny bit in shipping so it’s possible that’s affected the experience, but it didn’t taste off in that way to me.
Minutia: Distilled on December 7, 2006, matured 12 years in hogsheads (Cask Nos. 311567 & 311568), bottled on March 20, 2019. 506 bottles produced. Enjoyed neat in a glencairn.
Color: White wine.
Nose: Sea spray, bit of citrus, bit of apple. An amazing smoky smell lies on top of everything.
Taste: Seaweed, intense smokiness. It’s a bit funky.
Finish: Salty, smoky, bitter in the way salty sweets can be. Medium long (much closer to long). Like the aftertaste of a really good sausage, a smoky venison sausage came to mind.
The nose is the star of the show. The finish felt substantial; more substance to it than you’d expect from a liquid you’ve already swallowed. It feels and tastes good in the mouth, but it’s the weak point – albeit next to two very strong points. I think the palate suffers from being bookended by a terrific prologue and epilogue. I don’t believe the shipping issue had any effect on this, but if the spirit suffered from the minor seal break in transit, then the untainted expression has to be out of this world. I liked it enough to order a whole bottle when I came across it, and another when the stock was down to the last one, and I’m definitely going to be keeping my eye out for similar Caol Ila bottlings.
Score: 93
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