Big Peat The Edinburgh Edition

Big Peat The Edinburgh Edition is a peated Islay blended malt from Douglas Laing, with rare Port Ellen inside. The vatting brings Islay's smoke together with the prized Port Ellen thread. The Port Ellen thread is what many collectors prize most in it.

The category marries malts from different distilleries, here the peated malts of Islay. Built without an age statement, the rare Port Ellen at its heart brings a structured, briny smoke. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak, the wood holding back so the peat speaks. Decades in oak soften the phenols, turning sharp peat reek into mellow embers. It wears the big, coastal smoke of the island with pride. A modern Islay dram with a thread of the past inside. The Islay malts give it a smoke quite unlike a mainland blend. Vattings like this let the smoky malts of Islay shine together. The peat is the point here, drawn from Islay's smoky distilleries.

At an easy 46% it is gentle and briny. A refined peat reek runs over a waxy, briny lift, with soft coconut and vanilla from the oak. The texture is oily and coating, the smoke threaded with sea salt. The close is slow, soft peat over wax. A rich Islay dram threaded with rare Port Ellen.