Caol Ila 18 Year Old Chorlton Whisky 50.7%

Nose: The nose is light and lively, with fabulous lime leaves, smoked butter and almonds, coal tar, old emulsion pots, frangipane and honeysuckle.

Palate: The palate has an elegant arrival, with soft limey and honeyed smoke. It develops on smoked apricot, tiger balm and oyster brine.

Finish: A lingering finish with more lime, coal smoke, a single liquorice drop and jasmine tea.

Caol Ila in the north of Isle of Islay was founded as far back as 1846 by Hector Henderson. The distillery is sited near Port Askaig overlooking the beautiful Sound of Islay which it is named after in Gaelic- ‘Caol Ila’.

Over the years the distillery changed hands numerous times and was subsequently bought by Distillers Company Ltd in 1927. In the early 1970’s there was a complete overhaul of the old buildings and six new stills were put in place then in 2022 a brand new visitors centre opened.

Much of the whisky produced goes into the Johnnie Walker blends and a very small amount is kept aside for maturing as a Caol Ila expression. The single malt is mainly made with peated barley giving the final flavour profile that classic Islay taste. In the core range there’s the Moch with no age plus the 12, 18 and 25 year olds. Also in the range is The Distiller’s Edition which has a delicious muscatel finish.

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