Caol Ila 7 Years Old 2015 Cask #313027 (van Wees)

A 7 year old Caol Ila from the Dutch bottler van Wees, from cask 313027, bottled at 59.2%, one of 308 bottles. Caol Ila looks out across the Sound to the Paps of Jura. The malt is medium peated, giving a cleaner smoke than the south shore Islays.

Here the spirit was run from peated malt through tall stills on Loch nam Ban water, for the clean island smoke prized by blenders. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanilla and a light sweetness under the smoke. Early, extractive maturation draws vanillin (vanilla) and furfural (toasted almond) from the wood over a clean, phenolic smoke. The oily texture comes from the spirit cut, the cask adding depth around it. The spirit's lightness lets sherry, wine and bourbon casks all show through. The original Victorian distillery was almost entirely rebuilt in the modern era. The cool Islay air gives a slow, steady maturation by the shore.

Undiluted at 59.2%, it is powerful. A coastal peat with citrus and pepper, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The texture is oily, the smoke threaded with citrus. Lemon, soft ash and sea salt see it out. This is an Islay malt that wears its smoke lightly.