Caol Ila 12 Years Old 2009 Cask #306886 (Connoisseurs Choice)

A 12 year old Caol Ila, this distilled in 2009 from the Elgin house Gordon and MacPhail, from cask 306886, bottled at 58.9%, one of 182 bottles. Caol Ila is prized for a smoke that leans to lemon and olive oil rather than tar. The six tall stills sit behind picture windows looking out to Jura.

Worked from peated barley through the distillery's tall stills, for an oily smoke that leans to lemon and brine. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, the oak quiet behind the spirit. Through integration the spirit and cask settle, lactone coconut and a soft vanillin balancing the easing phenols. Sea air works into the maturing casks, lending a briny, coastal lift. Its peated character is built on malt smoked to a medium level of phenols. Caol Ila's smoke leans to lemon, olive oil and brine rather than tar or iodine. Olive oil and lemon sit at the heart of the Caol Ila character.

At 58.9%, undiluted, it is bold and clean. A fresh peat smoke over oily lemon, with a touch of vanilla and toffee. Smoke, lemon and a saline minerality fill the middle. A smoky, oily warmth lingers with lemon and salt. This is an Islay malt that wears its smoke lightly.