Caol Ila 10 Years Old 1994 Cask #04/550 (Signatory)

A 10 year old Caol Ila from the Pitlochry bottler Signatory Vintage, from cask 04/550, bottled at 46%, one of 97 bottles. Caol Ila was founded in 1846 by Hector Henderson. Its peated character is built on malt smoked to a medium level of phenols.

Here the spirit was distilled slowly from peated malt for a refined island smoke, for an oily smoke that leans to lemon and brine. A refill bourbon hogshead held it, keeping the distillery character to the fore. Through integration the spirit and cask settle, lactone coconut and a soft vanillin balancing the easing phenols. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, which is why it suits so many wood types. Smoked citrus and a saline minerality are the hallmarks of the make. The peat here is medium rather than heavy, so fruit and smoke share the glass. From a small Victorian works it grew into one of Scotland's biggest malt distilleries.

At 46% it is supple and oily. Peat, smoked fish and a citrus oil, with a soft vanilla from the oak. Beneath the smoke run lemon, brine and a peppery oil. A smoky, oily warmth lingers with lemon and salt. This is a lemony, coastal Islay single malt.