Caol Ila 7 Years Old 2014 Cask #2015620 (Murray McDavid)

A Caol Ila of a 7 year old chosen by the independent Murray McDavid, distilled in 2014, from cask 2015620, bottled at 56.8%, one of 307 bottles. Caol Ila is an Islay malt of clean, oily, citrus driven smoke. Water falls to the distillery from Loch nam Ban in the hills above.

Here the spirit was distilled with a long fermentation and a clean cut, for a clean, coastal, oily make. A sherry cask gave dried fruit and a dark, nutty sweetness. At an extractive age eugenol lends a clove note and oak lactones a coconut sweetness, the guaiacol smoke bright and fresh. The clean spirit shows the cask clearly, which is why it suits so many wood types. Refill oak lets the maritime peat and lemon of the spirit lead the way. A ferry crosses the Sound from Port Askaig to Jura and the mainland. A clean smoke and a coastal salt define the distillery style.

At a full 56.8% it is bold and oily. Sea spray, smoke and a citrus lift, with raisin, date and treacle from the cask. Smoked lemon and sea salt build over an oily body. The close is long, smoke over a citrus lift. This is the smoky malt of the Sound of Islay.