Port Ellen 18 Years Old 1981 McGibbon’s Provenance (Douglas McGibbon) (43%)

A Port Ellen single malt, selected and bottled by Douglas McGibbon, an 18 year old Islay malt, from 1981 and bottled at 43%. Just 522 bottles were filled. The legendary Port Ellen, opened in 1825 on the Kildalton shore of Islay, was brought to a halt in 1983. Diageo's Special Releases turned it into a cult name.

The barley was heavily peated, dried over smoke from Islay's own peat, distilled in onion shaped copper pot stills on Leorin Lochs water, yielding a clean, mineral smoke with a citric lift. An ex-Bourbon hogshead held it, the soft oak letting the Islay character lead. By this age the peat has begun to soften, settling into the oak and the brine. Refill ex-Bourbon oak, having given its sharpest notes to an earlier fill, lets the peat and the spirit lead. The peat came from Islay's own Duich Moss, localising the whole character. For years the spirit went quietly into blends before its single malt became a legend.

At an easy 43% it is gentle and briny. Embers of Islay peat carries salted citrus and a soft wax, with a quiet sweetness from the refill cask. Soft embers and brine sit behind the smoke. A long, briny finish smoulders to the end. This is a rare survivor of the 1983 closure.