Caol Ila 8 Years Old 2008 Cask #310354 (van Wees)

A Caol Ila of an 8 year old chosen by the Dutch bottler van Wees, distilled in 2008, from cask 310354, bottled at 56.7%, one of 310 bottles. Caol Ila is an east coast Islay distillery on the strait facing Jura. A few weeks each year the distillery runs an unpeated, Highland style spirit.

The spirit was distilled with a long fermentation and a clean cut, for a clean, coastal, oily make. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, the oak quiet behind the spirit. At an extractive age eugenol lends a clove note and oak lactones a coconut sweetness, the guaiacol smoke bright and fresh. The medium peating leaves a smoke that is firm but never heavy. The spirit's high notes of lemon and grass survive even long maturation. Maturation by the sea gives the malt its mineral, sea spray character. Years in oak round the smoke, the peat mellowing while the brine stays.

At a natural 56.7% it is full and oily. A smoky, briny coastal character, with vanilla and a honeyed edge from the cask. The oily body carries the smoke long and clean. It finishes smoky, oily and bright. This is a clean coastal malt with a lemony peat.