Caol Ila 14 Years Old 2012 Cask #UC058 (Uncharted Whisky Co.)

This Caol Ila was bottled by the bottler Uncharted Whisky Co, a 14 year old, distilled in 2012, from cask UC058, bottled at 55%, one of 342 bottles. Caol Ila looks out across the Sound to the Paps of Jura. Diageo's Special Releases have featured both peated and unpeated Caol Ila.

It was distilled in tall stills that lend the smoke an oily lightness, shaping the lighter side of Islay. A bourbon barrel held it, the oak lending vanilla and a little cream. Integration sees eugenol (clove) and vanillin (vanilla) fold into the spirit, the medicinal smoke gentler now. The peat here is medium rather than heavy, so fruit and smoke share the glass. The original Victorian distillery was almost entirely rebuilt in the modern era. The lighter style means the cask and the citrus speak alongside the peat. Much of the spirit leaves the island by sea to mature on the mainland.

At 55%, undiluted, it is bold and clean. Smoke, grapefruit and a maritime salt, with a creamy oak note. Smoked lemon and sea salt build over an oily body. The finish is clean, smoky and maritime. This is a clean Islay smoke from the island's largest distillery.