Here is the second of this week’s reviews of peated whiskies from Islay. (See here for Monday’s review of an indie Laphroaig.) Today I have for you a 14 yo Caol Ila that was matured in a mix of refill and freshly charred hogsheads. This is an official release, part of a Diageo series named Four Corners. The series also includes releases from Glenkinchie, Cardhu and Clynelish. Together these are said to form the four corners of Scotland (let’s not look too closely at an actual map), or at least of Diageo’s Scottish portfolio map (let’s not look too closely at an actual map). This might put you in mind of Diageo’s old Classic Malts lineup but I believe this series may also have something to do with all four distilleries having recently been refurbished in a major way. I could be wrong: as I’ve noted before, it’s been years since I’ve paid attention to whisky industry news. The most shocking thing about the series though is that all four releases not only have age statements but are also in their teens. And all are at cask strength. I’m not sure what’s gotten into Diageo. Well, nothing too drastic as the prices were rather keen—obviously no lapse on that front. Anyway, let’s see what this is like. Continue reading
Category Archives: Caol Ila
Caol Ila 18, 2001 (Gordon & MacPhail)
Caol Ila week comes to a close with the oldest of the trio (see here for Monday’s 9 yo and here for Wednesday’s 11 yo). This 18 yo was also released by Gordon & Macphail but is from a single first-fill bourbon barrel. Let’s get right to it.
Caol Ila 18, 2001 (57.2%; Gordon & MacPhail; first-fill bourbon barrel 308901; from a bottle split)
Nose: The smoke is more woody than phenolic to open, with a fair bit of cream in there as well. On the second sniff there’s a meaty savouriness and some lemon and then the coastal notes begin to emerge: salt crystals, shells, kelp. The salt intensifies as it goes. With more time there’s roasted malt and charred oak. A few drops of water bring out even more of the char. Continue reading
Caol Ila 11, 2005 (Gordon & MacPhail)
Alright, Caol Ila week got off to a good start on Monday with a young Signatory release put together from a mix of ex-sherry and ex-bourbon casks. Here now is an only-slightly older release from Gordon & Macphail that was put together from first-fill bourbon barrels (how many, I’m not sure). Let’s get right to it.
Caol Ila 11, 2005 (54.1%; Gordon & MacPhail; first-fill bourbon barrels; from a bottle split)
Nose: A little closed at first but then there’s oak. The peat takes a few beats to register and then it’s there, with disinfectant mixed in with some lemon, brine and some slightly ashy smoke. As it sits a fair bit of vanilla emerges and the oak gets toasted. With water the smoke and the oak both pick up some char and the vanilla turns to cream. Continue reading
Caol Ila 9, 2010, Small Batch #7 (Signatory for Kirsch Import)
The first whisky reviews of 2024 were both of peated whiskies last week: a very nice Croftengea 12, and an Ardmore 23 that was not as nice at all. Let’s keep the peat flowing this week, with a trio of Caol Ilas. Hopefully, they will put us back on a positive trajectory. First up, is a young small batch release from Signatory that was put together for the German market from two refill butts and three refill hogsheads. Let’s see what it’s like.
Caol Ila 9, 2010, Small Batch #7 (47.1%; Signatory for Kirsch Import; two refill butts+three refill hogsheads; from a bottle split)
Nose: Phenolic, inky peat with green bell pepper, as is not unusual with sherried Caol Ila. On the second sniff there’s some lemon and some brine to go with the ink as well as some more savoury notes. As it sits there’s more coastal notes (shells, more brine) and an open jar of kalamata olives as well. Softer notes emerge with more time (vanilla, milky cocoa). A few drops of water bring out more vanilla. Continue reading
Caol Ila 22, 1990 (Mackillop’s Choice)
This week of Mackillop’s Choice releases comes to a close with the oldest of the trio: a 22 year old Caol Ila. Monday’s 19 year old Scapa was very good; Tuesday’s 20 year old Bowmore, less so….Hopefully, this Caol Ila will give the week a good ending. Let’s see. By the way, unlike the other two (or, for that matter, the three I reviewed in May—here, here and here), it was bottled at 46%.
Caol Ila 22, 1990 (46%; Mackillop’s Choice; from a bottle split)
Nose: Mineral peat, olive brine, a touch of lemon. On the second sniff there’s ashy smoke and more of the coastal complex (kelp, oysters). More “green”/vegetal notes as it sits and then some sweeter notes (wet stones, apples). Softer with a drop of water: smoked cream.
Palate: The smoke starts out sharp but turns sweet as I swallow. A good drinking strength; rich texture. As it sits, there’s a mix of soot, coal and ash on the smoke front, more of the wet stones, and some cracked pepper. Water emphasizes the pepper. Continue reading
Caol Ila 15, 2007 (Signatory)
Caol Ila week began on Monday with a nice 7 yo bourbon barrel whisky bottled by Single Cask Nation. It continued on Tuesday with a very good 10 yo single refill sherry butt. Here now to close out the week is the oldest of the trio: a 15 yo from Signatory that received a two year “finish” in a first-fill oloroso butt. Two years seems more like double maturation territory. It’s not clear, of course, if this was a product of re-racking multiple casks into the first-fill butt or if the cask/s re-racked were all sherry casks to begin with. It’s a brave new world of single cask whisky we live in—or to be exact, have lived in for some time. Alright, let’s get to it.
Caol Ila 15, 2007 (53.7%; Signatory; finished in first-fill oloroso butt 204; from a bottle split)
Nose: Raisiny sherry with not much sign of smoke or peat at first sniff. On the second sniff, there’s the smoke: dry woodsmoke with a lot of salt around the edges. Mild phenols emerge as it sits; the woodsmoke and the raisins merge and move in the direction of pipe tobacco. More of the pipe tobacco with water. Continue reading
Caol Ila 10, 2007 (G&M for Binny’s)
Caol Ila week began yesterday with a 7 yo bottled by Single Cask Nation from bourbon barrels. The second Caol Ila of the week is slightly older at 10 years old and was bottled by G&M from a single refill sherry butt for Binny’s in Chicago. I’ve had a number of excellent sherried Caol Ilas of this general age from G&M—see, for example, this one. Then again, I’ve also had some that were less excellent—see, for example, this one. Let’s see where this one falls.
Caol Ila 10, 2007 (59%; G&M for Binny’s; refill sherry butt 311989; from a bottle split)
Nose: Ah, very nice notes of sweet pipe tobacco off the top with ashier smoke coming up from below. On the second sniff there’s some orange peel and some biscuity malt, even as the ashy smoke expands. With time there’s a hint of apricot as well and also a bit of savoury gunpowder. With a big squirt of water there’s a fair bit of butterscotch and then more of the savoury gunpowder. Continue reading
Caol Ila 7, 2015 (Single Cask Nation)
Last week’s series of reviews of wine-bothered, peaty whiskies ended with a 16 yo Caol Ila with a moscatel finish. Let’s make this week all about Caol Ila, beginning with a much younger release put together from refill bourbon barrels—no wine in sight.
Caol Ila 7, 2015 (57.1%; Single Cask Nation; refill bourbon barrels; from a bottle split)
Nose: Bright carbolic peat mixed with lemon and brine. Sweeter on the second sniff with cereals and a bit of vanilla. The brine expands with each sniff and there’s a mild “green” vegetal note as well—green bell pepper. After a while there’s a nice balance of carbolic peat, acid and sweeter notes. With a few drops of water it’s sweeter still and the peat moves from carbolic to a little more phenolic/inky. More salt too now. Continue reading
Caol Ila 16, 2006 (Infrequent Flyers)
This week of reviews of wine-bothered peated whiskies got off to a rather rocky start on Monday with a 10 yo Ballechin from a marsala cask. Things looked up significantly with Wednesday’s Kilchoman for Spec’s which had received a madeira cask finish. That one was three years younger but balanced the peat and the sweeter wine notes well. Here to close out the week is a Caol Ila that is almost as old as the other two put together. This is also a finish, this time in moscatel casks. If I recall correctly, the Caol Ila Distillers Edition—is that still a regular thing?—is also a moscatel finish; but I’m not sure what connection that might have to a 16 yo moscatel finished whisky released by an indie bottler: perhaps something left over from a Feis Ile or Distillery Exclusive experiment? If you have any ideas, please write in below. The bottler in question is the Alistair Walker Whisky Company, who put out all their releases under the Infrequent Flyers label. While the company is relatively new, Alistair Walker has been around in the whisky world for a while. He’s the son of Billy Walker, ex of Benriach/Glendronach, now at Glenallachie. Indeed, he was the source of the information on Glendronach’s “single cask” practices that led to this post, early in the blog’s career. Of course, none of that has anything to do with this whisky but I got a bit of a kick out of it when I found out. Continue reading
Caol Ila 17, 1991 (Single Malts of Scotland)
This week’s recipe will also not post on a Thursday (today) but on a Friday (tomorrow). Instead, I have for you today the last in this week’s independently bottled Caol Ila triad featuring three different cask profiles.
The week began on Monday with a 12 yo bottled by DS Tayman. That one was a bourbon cask that had been finished in a Bordeaux cask. On Wednesday I posted a review of a 13 yo bottled by Old Particular for K&L in California. That one was from a refill butt. I liked both fine—and the 13 yo a bit more than the 12 yo—but neither got me very excited. I already know that I like today’s 17 yo from a single bourbon hogshead more than either. That’s because this is taken from a large reference sample I saved from the bottle many years ago. Yes, unlike the DS Tayman and Old Particular releases, this is one of my signature highly untimely reviews. This 17 yo was distilled in 1991 and bottled in 2008 by Single Malts of Scotland—back when my referring to Single Malts of Scotland as the Whisky Exchange’s indie label didn’t make Billy Abbot’s beard quiver with rage. I have the score I gave it then recorded in my spreadsheet but not my notes. Let’s see if the scores match across the years. Continue reading
Caol Ila 13, 2008 (Old Particular for K&L)
Caol Ila week began yesterday with a 12 yo finished in a Bordeaux cask. It started out well but I was not finally very enthusiastic about it. Today I have a 13 yo that was matured in a sherry cask. If I’m generally suspicious about red wine cask-matured whisky of any kind, I’m usually very excited to try Caol Ilas from sherry casks. Be it a richer sherry cask profile or a drier one, Caol Ila’s distillate usually matches it well. I certainly hope that will be the case for this one, a refill butt bottled by Old Particular for K&L in California. Let’s get right to it.
Caol Ila 13, 2008 (56.9%; Old Particular for K&L; refill butt; from a bottle split)
Nose: Very nice, very quintessentially Caol Ila notes of lemon, mineral peat and coastal notes (brine, oyster liquor) and green olives. Green peppery bite on the second sniff and a touch of cream. With time the cream expands a bit. A few drops of water and it gets softer still, with the smoke all but receding into the background. Continue reading
Caol Ila 12, 2008 (DS Tayman)
It’s been almost exactly three months since my last week of reviews of malts from a single distillery. That was a Kilkerran week (here, here and here). This week will feature three Caol Ilas. They’re from three different cask types: ex-bourbon, refill butt, and in the case of today’s review, a Bordeaux finish. I will confess that when I purchased this bottle I did not realize this was a Bordeaux finish. I generally avoid red wine finishes. But I was at the store without my reading glasses and the font size on the details on the label is very small indeed. That label is by a bottler I had not previously heard of: DS Tayman. Their website says their whiskies are available in the US, UK, Israel and Australia—so I assume it’s not an American concern, as I’d first though they might be. If you know more about them, please write in below. The bottles are attractive; the whisky is bottled at 46%; and the price—at least on this Caol Ila was fair: cheaper at Total Wine than the official Caol Ila 12 at 43%. What’s not to like? Well, maybe the red wine finish. Let’s see. Continue reading
Caol Ila 10, 2009 (Single Malts of Scotland)
The first whisky review of December is the last of my peated Islay week. The first two reviews were of official distillery releases that came out this year—yes, not only did I have two timely reviews, I had them back to back: Monday’s Laphroaig Cairdeas 2022 and Tuesday’s Lagavulin 11, Offerman Edition, Charred Oak. I liked both well enough. Today’s review is of an independent release of Caol Ila—in about the general ballpark of the others, age-wise (I assume the Laphroaig is somewhere near 10 years old as well). It’s not the most untimely of my reviews, as this was released only about three years ago, in November 2019. The bottler is the Whisky Exchange, I mean, Elixir Distillers, under the Single Malts of Scotland label. Yes, yes, I know Elixir Distillers was spun off as a separate company some years ago but it’s all the Whisky Exchange to me. Teenaged ex-bourbon hogshead Caol Ila is one of my favourite profiles of whisky and I’m hoping that this 10 yo turns out to be precocious in that regard. Continue reading
Caol Ila 16, 2002 (G&M)
Let’s round off this week of single casks of Caol Ila bottled by Gordon & Macphail with the oldest of the trio. This 16 yo was—like Wednesday’s 14 yo—matured in a first-fill bourbon barrel. Will the extra two years of maturation allow more of Caol Ila’s elegance to emerge or will the oak have a greater say? Let’s see.
Caol Ila 16, 2002 (54.9%; G&M; first-fill bourbon barrel; from my own bottle)
Nose: A big blast of carbolic peat mixed in with salt crystals, olive brine, lemon and cracked pepper. As it sits the coastal complex develops more fully with shells, oyster liquor and a campfire on the beach. With more time the lemon and salt meld and expand. With a few drops of water the lemon turns to citronella with a vengeance here as well but there’s some sweet malty notes too now and some charred pineapple. Continue reading
Caol Ila 14, 2003 (G&M)
Let’s keep G&M Caol Ila week going. On Monday I reviewed a 14 yo bottled by the Elgin stalwarts. That one was distilled in 2005 and matured in a refill sherry hogshead. Today I have another 14 yo but this one was distilled in 2003 and matured in a first-fill bourbon barrel. Teenaged bourbon cask Caol Ila is usually a cause for joy but the combination of both first-fill wood and the smaller barrel might be causes for concern—with the possibility of too much oak action. But hopefully the spirit will rise above it all. Let’s see.
Caol Ila 14, 2003 (56%; G&M; first-fill bourbon barrel; from my own bottle)
Nose: Carbolic peat off the top with sweeter notes of cereals and vanilla (not overbearing) mixed in. As it sits the vanilla retreats in favour of lemon and it begins to get quite coastal with shells and salt and kelp. Some white pepper in there too now and there’s a recently tarred road in the middle distance. Saltier still with time. With a bit of water it gets sweeter at first—not vanilla so much as sweet malt—and then there’s preserved lemon. The tar is gone. Continue reading
Caol Ila 14, 2005 (G&M)
Okay, let’s do another week of peat; and let’s go back to Islay and do a week all at one distillery. And for good measure let’s do a trio of releases from one independent bottler. Back in May I split several bottles with a small group of friends—Michael Kravitz of Diving for Pearls was among them but I don’t believe he’s reviewed any of them yet. Among the bottles were a trio of Caol Ilas released by Gordon & MacPhail in their redone Connoisseurs Choice series—to think that this was once an entry-level series in which G&M released anonymous whisky at 40% abv. Two of these Caol Ilas are from bourbon casks and one from a refill sherry cask. I’m going to start with the refill sherry. It was distilled in 2005 and bottled in 2019 at what is normally a promising strength in the mid-50s (this is the abv range in which Springbank usually operates with their cask strength releases). The fact that it’s a refill sherry hogshead suggests that a sherry butt was broken down and re-coopered as a hogshead; or maybe an ex-bourbon hogshead was seasoned with sherry. Hopefully, the former and not the latter as there’s a better chance of there not being a big dose of sherry sitting on top of the elegant Caol Ila peat. Let’s see. Continue reading
Caol Ila 8, 2013 (Thompson Bros. for K&L)
Peated Islay week started with Batch 013 of the Laphroaig 10 CS. It turned out to be my least favourite of the batches so far—though by no means a bad whisky. Today I have a review of a slightly younger Islay whisky. Speaking of which, ignore what it says on the sample bottle label in the picture alongside: that second line listing age and abv was swapped accidentally with that of a Thompson Bros. Teaninich. This is a Caol Ila 8, distilled in 2013 and bottled at 57% abv. Caol Ila is almost always good for the kind of nuance missing in that Laphroaig 10 CS, especially when matured in bourbon casks; and this one was matured in a refill hogshead. The bottlers are Simon and Phil Thompson of the Dornoch Distillery and hotel (see my brief account of a visit there in 2018). They are well-known figures in the single malt whisky world and are working as small-scale independent bottlers as their own spirit waits to come online. This is one of a few casks they’ve bottled recently for K&L in California. Let’s see what it’s like. Continue reading
Caol Ila 11, 2007 (Berry Bros. & Rudd)
After a week of Ardmore in the eastern Highlands let’s swing over west and south to Islay. This time it won’t be a single distillery that occupies our time but three different ones. And the peat will be heavier. First up: one of younger bourbon cask Caol Ilas that are usually rather good indeed. This cask was bottled by Berry Bros. & Rudd, which theoretically should also be a good sign. But the proof is in the glass. Let’s see.
Caol Ila 11, 2007 (55%; Berry Bros. & Rudd; cask 319464; from a bottle split)
Nose: Bright carbolic peat mixed with lemon and ash and salt. The salt expands on the second sniff, picking up more coastal accents (shells, kelp). The salt expands with each sniff and there’s a mezcal note in there too that speaks of youth. With more time there’s some vanilla mixed in as well and the lemon turns to citronella. With water the mezcal recedes but the vanilla expands. It gets more phenolic too but I’m not sure that mix of vanilla and heavy phenols works so well. Continue reading
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