Port Ellen 23 Years Old 1979 Cask #5152 (Signatory)

Signatory Vintage bottled this Port Ellen single malt, a 23 year old from 1979, drawn from cask 5152 and bottled at 43%. Only 372 bottles were released. The legendary Port Ellen, built in 1825 by the sea on Islay's south shore, was silenced in 1983 when Islay had one distillery too many. Most of its make once went to blends, but its single malt became the prize.

Drawn off traditional pot stills fed by the Leorin Lochs, to build a smoke at once oily, briny and refined. Refill ex-Bourbon casks held the spirit, the wood Port Ellen is most often found in. Long ageing leaves a mellow smoke, a lanolin wax and a maritime depth. Refill wood flatters Port Ellen, holding back the vanilla so the smoke and citrus speak. Its cult grew with every passing year the warehouses stayed quiet. The closed era spirit is finite, and every bottle drawn is one fewer left. The spirit breathed sea air through long maturation on the island.

Reduced to 43%, it is mellow. Crystallised lemon and a salty tang ride on a coastal peat smoke, with a quiet sweetness from the refill cask. A crystallised lemon and a saline tang lift the smoke. It closes long, smoky and maritime. This is a rare survivor of the 1983 closure.