In the early 2000s the whisky industry was just beginning to warm up after the frosty 1980s and early 1990s. Independent bottlers, such as Douglas Laing, benefited massively from the availability of cheap, mature stock as distilleries, brokers, and warehouses looked to move inventory and free up capital. It is hard to imagine that situation any more, but it powered the growth of the independent bottler side of the industry. Douglas Laing is still around, now joined by Hunter Laing after the brothers in charge went their separate ways. I wish older Caol Ila like this were more widely available and affordable today— though maybe the market will cool off, as many forecast, and prices at least pause their steep climb for a few years.

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Whisky: Caol Ila 28 Year (1979), Douglas Laing

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 54.6%

Cask: Oak

Age: 28 years (Distilled Feb. 1979, Bottled April 2007)

Notes: Dirty, industrial, and herbal; were we pounding shots of digestifs in the crumbling parking lot outside an old pineapple cannery? The herbal elements landed somewhere between thyme and thistle with mugwort pushing in a more medicinal direction, though occasionally it felt more like seasoning for roasted white fish. Rusted metal, tar, and crumbling asphalt completed the picture as hints of pineapple ducked in the background. Medium-bodied and oily on the palate, the flavors were similar with plenty of herbal digestifs and tonics lighting up the taste buds under a blanket of soot. Dirty industrial elements were present with more tar, lubricants, rusted metal, and grease stains— less pineapple cannery parking lot, and more oily mackerel and brine. The finish was long and peppery with mackerel, ash, and a shot of herbal bitters.

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Score: 8-9 (89)

Mental Image: Food Tins by Candlelight

Conclusion: Fabulously dirty and medicinal, this well-aged Caol Ila was a bit quiet on the nose, but bursting with oily flavor on the palate.  The profile was a touch unusual, especially in the sharpness of its herbal and asphalt character, bearing little of the charcoal grill and beach barbecue I expect from the era and age. It felt like an homage to the character of old pre-rebuild Caol Ila, though lacking the intensity of those whiskies.  Overall, interesting and good; a winning combination.