Port Ellen 1982 3R (Three Rivers Tokyo (3R))

A Port Ellen single malt, selected and bottled by Three Rivers Tokyo (3R) matured to 29 year old, from 1982 and bottled at 55.5%. A release of 150 bottles. The legendary Port Ellen, established in 1825 beside the bay at Port Ellen on Islay, was closed in 1983 and long mourned. Its dwindling stock became some of the most collectable in Scotch.

The barley was heavily peated, dried over smoke from Islay's own peat, made in onion shaped stills on soft Islay water, for a peat reek tempered by salt and citrus. Refill bourbon wood held the spirit, flattering its citric, oily smoke. Long ageing leaves a mellow smoke, a lanolin wax and a maritime depth. Time in the cask rounds the spirit, the smoke settling into a soft, waxy depth. The casks were filled before the stills fell silent in 1983. Diageo invested heavily to raise the distillery again two centuries on. Long island ageing lends a saline thread to the deep smoke.

At a hearty 55.5% it carries real weight. A coastal peat smoke carries maritime salt and citrus, with a quiet sweetness from the refill cask. Beneath the peat run lemon, wax and a mineral note. It closes long, smoky and maritime. This is a rare survivor of the 1983 closure.