Ledaig 2007 vW (van Wees)

Bottled by van Wees, this Ledaig matured to 11 year old from 2007, drawn from cask 9 and bottled at 59.7%. The outturn was 279 bottles. Ledaig is the smoky side of Tobermory distillery on the Isle of Mull, one of Scotland's oldest distilleries. The stills carry boil bulbs and an S shaped kink in the lyne arms, which raises reflux.

Drawn off stills with their S shaped lyne arms, from peated malt, for a heavily peated island spirit. A fortified cask shaped it, the fruit meeting the smoke. At a youthful age the smoke is vigorous and coastal. Sea air works into the island maturation, lending Ledaig its briny, coastal edge. It is one of the oldest commercial distilleries in Scotland still working. Tobermory has distilled in the island's harbour town since 1798. The town of Tobermory was laid out by the British Fisheries Society a decade before the distillery came. The distillery's history is broken by long silences; its buildings once stored a local cheddar.

At a hearty 59.7% it carries real weight. A sooty smoke with tar and brine, and the Port cask adds plum and red berry. The texture is oily, the smoke threaded with sea salt. A long, ashy finish ends on sea salt. This is Ledaig's smoky, maritime single malt.