Big Peat The V&B Edition

Big Peat The V&B 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. Maturation in a refill ex-Bourbon barrel kept the malt lean and smoky. Decades in oak soften the phenols, turning sharp peat reek into mellow embers. Vattings like this let the smoky malts of Islay shine together. The peat is the point here, drawn from Islay's smoky distilleries. Bottlings carrying closed distillery malt grow rarer each year. Douglas Laing has long specialised in the malts of the islands.

At an approachable 46% it is refined. A graceful Islay smoke runs over a waxy, briny lift, with a light vanilla from the refill oak. The texture is oily and coating, the smoke threaded with sea salt. The finish smoulders gently, oily and long. A big, smoky Islay vatting with closed distillery Port Ellen inside.