Caol Ila 8 Years Old 2011 Cask #70 (Acorn)

An 8 year old Caol Ila from the bottler Acorn, from cask 70, bottled at 57.9%, one of 215 bottles. Caol Ila is prized for a smoke that leans to lemon and olive oil rather than tar. Much of the spirit leaves the island by sea to mature on the mainland.

Distilled from medium peated malt in tall copper stills, giving a clean, lemony peat. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanilla and a light sweetness under the smoke. These first years are extractive, the oak giving lactones as coconut and vanillin as vanilla beneath a sharp, citrussy smoke. The spirit's high notes of lemon and grass survive even long maturation. The medium peating leaves a smoke that is firm but never heavy. The malt is medium peated, giving a cleaner smoke than the south shore Islays. Refill oak lets the maritime peat and lemon of the spirit lead the way. Phenols from the peat smoke carry the medicinal, lemony edge through the years.

At cask strength 57.9% it is muscular. Wood smoke, lemon zest and brine, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The palate is oily and smoky, with a green citrus lift. The close is long, smoke over a citrus lift. This is a lemony, coastal Islay single malt.