Ledaig 2007 LT (Liquid Treasures)

This is a Ledaig, drawn and bottled by Liquid Treasures, a 13 year old from 2007, drawn from cask 700029 and bottled at 52.9%. A release of 252 bottles. Ledaig is the heavily peated single malt of Tobermory distillery, the only distillery on the Isle of Mull, founded in 1798. The distillery makes two malts: the unpeated Tobermory and the peated Ledaig.

It was drawn off stills with their S shaped lyne arms, from peated malt, for a heavily peated island spirit. Maturation in sherry laid dried fruit over the peat. Past a decade the smoke softens, the soot and brine settling over ripe fruit. Long maturation turns fierce young smoke into a rounded, coastal peat. The stills carry boil bulbs and a kink in the lyne arms, which lifts the reflux. Water is drawn from a private hill loch, the Gearr Abhainn, above the town. Its painted home town gives the unpeated malt its name. A rare, more heavily peated make has appeared under the name Iona, after a neighbouring isle.

At a natural 52.9% it is bold and full. A sooty smoke with tar and brine, and the Pedro Ximenez lends raisin, date and treacle. The texture is oily, the smoke threaded with sea salt. Soot and brine see out a long finish. This is Ledaig's smoky, maritime single malt.