Caol Ila 4 Years Old 2019 Cask #309863 + 309880 (Milroy’s of Soho)

A Caol Ila of a 4 year old chosen by the bottler Milroy's of Soho, distilled in 2019, from cask 309863 + 309880, bottled at 61.4%. Caol Ila is the lighter, more elegant face of Islay smoke. The clean, lemony smoke has made it a favourite of blenders for generations.

This was run through tall copper stills that keep the smoke light, for a clean, coastal, oily make. A second fill bourbon cask kept the oak in the background. Young and extractive, the cask sheds vanillin (vanilla) and toasted hemicellulose sugars (a light caramel) fast, the phenols still sharp and medicinal. Active wood frames the smoke without smothering the citrus beneath. 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. Years in oak round the smoke, the peat mellowing while the brine stays.

At cask strength 61.4% it is muscular. A clean maritime smoke with lemon and brine, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A maritime salt and a lemon lift run through it. A smoky, oily warmth lingers with lemon and salt. This is a clean, smoky Islay single malt from Caol Ila.