Port Ellen 15 Years Old 1983 (Scott’s Selection)

Scott's Selection selected this Port Ellen at 15 year old, from 1983 and bottled at 54.9%. Port Ellen was founded in 1825 by the sea on Islay's south shore and silenced in 1983 when Islay had one distillery too many. Diageo's Special Releases turned it into a cult name.

Peat smoke from Islay's bogs dried the malt to its smoky pitch, drawn off traditional pot stills fed by the Leorin Lochs, for the refined smoke that made its name. An American oak cask shaped it, lending only a light sweetness under the smoke. Around two decades in oak knit the smoke with the wood into a maritime, citrus edged malt. Refill ex-Bourbon oak, having given its sharpest notes to an earlier fill, lets the peat and the spirit lead. Few lost distilleries are mourned as deeply, or bottled as devotedly, as Port Ellen. The refined, citric smoke set it apart from its more medicinal Islay neighbours.

At cask strength 54.9% it is muscular. A soft maritime smoke carries salted citrus and a soft wax, with a whisper of coconut from the cask. Soft embers and brine sit behind the smoke. A waxy, gently medicinal finish lingers long. This is a finite pour from Islay's most mourned distillery.