Caol Ila 11 Year Old Single Cask #UC043 57.9%

Nose

Smoke is not the star of the show. Bright and zingy fruity chews, baked peach crumble, salt and orange syrup.

Palate
The whisky almost seems to fizz. Marmalade- orange fruit sweetness and savoury bitterness of orange rind- alongside a delicate smoke. No sign of medicinal notes or the banana we often associate with Caol ila.

Finish

Rounded and full bodied coats the mouth. The smoke lingers a long time alongside a hint of mead and generous fruit.

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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