Port Ellen 27 Years Old 1983 Cask #10423 (Alambic Classique)

Alambic Classique bottled this Port Ellen single malt at 27 year old, from 1983, drawn from cask 10423 and bottled at 55.1%. Just 124 bottles were filled. Port Ellen, founded in 1825 on the Kildalton shore of Islay, was brought to a halt in 1983. Its last casks were laid down in 1983, a finite legacy ever since.

Distilled in onion shaped copper pot stills on Leorin Lochs water, yielding the poised, maritime smoke of classic Port Ellen. Maturation in a refill ex-Bourbon barrel kept the malt lean and smoky. Decades have eased the peat to a soft reek over beeswax and old oak. Maturation in old refill casks keeps the distillery character front and centre. 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.

Undiluted at 55.1%, it is deep and smoky. Crystallised lemon and a salty tang ride on a soft maritime smoke, with a touch of vanilla and cream from the wood. A crystallised lemon and a saline tang lift the smoke. A waxy, gently medicinal finish lingers long. This is a revered Islay malt from a distillery silent for forty years.