Caol Ila 8 Years Old 2016 Cask #C25132 (Claxton’s)

This Caol Ila was bottled by the bottler Claxton's, an 8 year old, distilled in 2016, from cask C25132, bottled at 55.6%, one of 72 bottles. Caol Ila is one of the largest malt distilleries in all of Scotland. The six tall stills sit behind picture windows looking out to Jura.

It was distilled from medium peated malt in tall copper stills, for a clean, coastal, oily make. Ex-Sherry wood added a dried fruit richness beneath the smoke. In these extractive early years the oak surrenders vanillin as vanilla and cis oak lactones as coconut, while guaiacol carries a vivid, lemony peat smoke. Refill oak lets the maritime peat and lemon of the spirit lead the way. The oily texture comes from the spirit cut, the cask adding depth around it. Water falls to the distillery from Loch nam Ban in the hills above. The warehouses are ranged along the rocky shore at the water's edge.

At cask strength 55.6% it is muscular. Wood smoke, lemon zest and brine, with raisin, date and treacle from the cask. Smoke, lemon and a saline minerality fill the middle. Ash, lemon and brine draw out the close. This is the elegant, lighter side of Islay.