Tobias & The Angel CB (Compass Box)

Tobias & The Angel CB (Compass Box) is a blended malt Scotch from Compass Box. It marries single malts from more than one distillery, Caol Ila among them. The malt is medium peated, giving a cleaner smoke than the south shore Islays.

The Caol Ila within lends a clean, lemony Islay smoke rather than a heavy tarry one. A refill hogshead held it quietly, the spirit left to lead. The oily texture comes from the spirit cut, the cask adding depth around it. Malt comes from the Port Ellen maltings on the south of the island. The tall stills and a high cut give a lighter, cleaner spirit than the southern Islays. Its spirit also feeds blends such as Bell's and Black Bottle. The lighter style means the cask and the citrus speak alongside the peat. Water falls to the distillery from Loch nam Ban in the hills above. Diageo's Special Releases have featured both peated and unpeated Caol Ila.

At 47.6%, undiluted, it is bold and clean. A coastal peat smoke runs through it, with lemon, brine and a soft oil over a sweet fruit. An oily smoke coats the palate, citrus and brine behind. The close is long, smoke over a citrus lift. A characterful smoky blended malt Scotch.