Caol Ila 14 Years Old 2008 Cask #310760 (Rest & be Thankful Whisky Company)

The bottler Rest & be Thankful Whisky Company selected this Caol Ila, a 14 year old, distilled in 2008, from cask 310760, bottled at 57.9%, one of 276 bottles. Caol Ila looks out across the Sound to the Paps of Jura. The original Victorian distillery was almost entirely rebuilt in the modern era.

It was run through tall copper stills that keep the smoke light, giving the lighter Islay style its shape. A long spell in ex-Bourbon oak rounded the spirit gently. By the integrating teens harsher congeners fade and ethyl esters build, lending a riper citrus over the softening peat. Caol Ila's smoke leans to lemon, olive oil and brine rather than tar or iodine. Port Askaig is a tiny settlement on the rugged east coast of Islay. The lighter style means the cask and the citrus speak alongside the peat. A few weeks each year the distillery runs an unpeated, Highland style spirit.

At its natural 57.9% it is concentrated. Smoke, grapefruit and a maritime salt, with a creamy oak note. A sea salt and an olive oil note sit under the smoke. A smoky, oily warmth lingers with lemon and salt. This is an elegant Islay single malt.