Caol Ila 11 Years Old 2008 Cask #356845 (James Eadie)

The bottler James Eadie selected this Caol Ila, an 11 year old, distilled in 2008, from cask 356845, bottled at 54.1%, one of 325 bottles. Caol Ila is a workhorse of the blending halls and a favourite of malt drinkers. A ferry crosses the Sound from Port Askaig to Jura and the mainland.

Distilled in tall stills that lend the smoke an oily lightness, building the elegant Islay smoke at its heart. An Oloroso hogshead lent raisin, fig and a savoury edge. By the integrating teens harsher congeners fade and ethyl esters build, lending a riper citrus over the softening peat. Active wood frames the smoke without smothering the citrus beneath. The clean, oily spirit takes cask flavour well while holding its citrus and smoke. The tall stills and a high cut give a lighter, cleaner spirit than the southern Islays. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, which is why it suits so many wood types.

At a full 54.1% it is bold and oily. A fresh peat smoke over oily lemon, with a dry, nutty edge from the cask. A maritime salt and a lemon lift run through it. A long maritime smoke closes it. This is a refined, citrus driven Islay smoke.