Caol Ila 11 Years Old 2010 Cask #DMG 14793 (Douglas McGibbon)

The bottler Douglas McGibbon released this Caol Ila, an 11 year old, distilled in 2010, from cask DMG 14793, bottled at 48%, one of 413 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.

It was run from peated malt through tall stills on Loch nam Ban water, for a smoke more elegant than heavy. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, the oak quiet behind the spirit. Through the integration phase spirit and wood marry, vanillin settling into a rounded vanilla as the guaiacol phenols mellow into a softer smoke. The peat here is medium rather than heavy, so fruit and smoke share the glass. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, which is why it suits so many wood types. Water falls to the distillery from Loch nam Ban in the hills above.

Undiluted at 48%, it is powerful. Ashy smoke, lemon oil and a saline tang, with a light vanilla and a touch of coconut. The palate is oily and smoky, with a green citrus lift. Smoke and sea salt see out a long finish. This is a clean coastal malt with a lemony peat.