Caol Ila 11 Years Old BNSp (WhiskyHeroes)

A Caol Ila drawn by the bottler Brave New Spirits, bottled at 50.4%, one of 380 bottles. Caol Ila stands below a steep brae on Islay's rugged east shore. Long fermentations build the fruity, citrus notes that sit beneath the smoke.

Here the spirit was drawn off a high cut from peated barley, building a refined, maritime peat. A second fill bourbon cask kept the oak in the background. In integration the oak lactones (coconut) and vanillin (vanilla) knit with the phenols, the whole growing rounder and oilier. The peat here is medium rather than heavy, so fruit and smoke share the glass. A slow maturation in the cool island air keeps the spirit fresh and oily. Long ageing turns the young, sharp peat into a soft, coastal smoke. The spirit's high notes of lemon and grass survive even long maturation. A clean smoke and a coastal salt define the distillery style.

At a natural 50.4% it is full and oily. Sea spray, smoke and a citrus lift, with vanilla and a soft caramel from the wood. Smoke, lemon and a saline minerality fill the middle. A long, coastal finish carries a peaty warmth. This is a maritime, lemony Islay single malt.