Ledaig 1997 (XOP)

Bottled by Douglas Laing, this Ledaig, a 25 year old island malt from 1997, drawn from cask DL 15873 and bottled at 57.2%. The outturn was 62 bottles. Ledaig, the peated malt of Mull's only distillery, keeps the old name the distillery bore when John Sinclair founded it in 1798. The single malts are bottled without chill filtration at 46.3 percent or higher.

Distilled from peated malt in kinked copper stills on soft Mull water, giving a sooty, coastal peat smoke over a fruity sweetness. It was matured in ex-Bourbon oak, a vanilla sweetness beneath the smoke. At this age it is mellow and oily, the smoke folded into a rich body. Refill oak lets the peat and brine of Ledaig lead. The distillery sits at the head of the bay, beneath a steep wooded hill. Both malts feed the Scottish Leader and Black Bottle blends as well as single malt. The distillery was refurbished and its stills renewed between 2017 and 2019.

At a hearty 57.2% it carries real weight. Peat smoke, brine and a medicinal note, and the ex-Bourbon lends vanilla and a soft honey. A BBQ char and a sea salt lift it. A long, ashy finish ends on sea salt. This is Ledaig, the peated malt of the Isle of Mull.