Port Ellen 17 Years Old 1980 Vintage for Meregalli Import (G&M)

This is a Port Ellen single malt, chosen and bottled by Gordon & MacPhail, a 17 year old from 1980 and bottled at 40%. Port Ellen was founded in 1825 on Islay's rocky southern seaboard and mothballed for good in 1983. Annual Special Releases through Diageo sealed its mythic status.

Islay peat dried the malt, lending the spirit its coastal smoke, for a smoke more graceful than its Islay neighbours. The spirit was worked through copper pot stills by the sea. Maturation in a refill ex-Bourbon barrel kept the malt lean and smoky. Around two decades in oak knit the smoke with the wood into a maritime, citrus edged malt. The long sleep concentrates the smoke and builds a lanolin, waxy texture. The old warehouses still hold the last of the closed era spirit. Port Ellen was one of three Diageo Islay distilleries, the one judged surplus in 1983.

At 40% it is balanced and smoky. Light oak sweetness underneath, while a gently medicinal smoke carries brine, wax and a mineral edge. A lanolin wax and a coastal salinity give it real weight. Embers and sea salt see out a long finish. This is a vanishing dram from Islay's most storied closed distillery.