Caol Ila 9 Year; Elixir Distillers’s Single Malts of Scotland
Whisky : Caol Ila 9 Year; Elixir Distillers’s Single Malts of Scotland
Country/Region : Scotland/Islay
ABV : 58.9%
Cask : Ex-Sherry Hogshead (Gonzalez Byass) (Distilled 3 Sept. 2009, Bottled 28 Feb. 2019)
Tasting : Neat in a Glencairn @ Home
Nose : Lovely depth to the nose that starts in a messy art Studio with oil paint, turpentine, and stretched canvas scattered about. Outside the studio is a rundown boardwalk along an industrialized shoreline; salty maritime air, distant coal smoke, rusting iron, and some rotten seafood. Tying everything together in the background is some salty lavash, lemony citrus, and a bit of creamy meringue.
Palate : Sharpe citrus and sea water— a slice of lemon in a glass of salt water? Sweet crystallized ginger provides a sweet heat while white pepper provides an almost stinky floral tone. It is an oily rusting shipwreck a hundred yards out in the surf. A strong tea in which someone has accidentally added salt instead of sugar.
Finish : Lingering tart citrus candy, warm spices, and faint smoke. Lovely long finish.
Score : 7
Mental Image : Sweating glass of ice cold sea water with a lemon wedge.
Something Similar : Caol Ila 17 Year “Unpeated Style” (similar clean salt/lemon, more funk, more fruit)
Something Similar : Rock Oyster/Island 18Y (similar citrus and saltwater, less finish, less rust/rot)
Something Worse : Nikka Yoichi NAS (less intense salty maritime, less finish, less clean citrus)
Notes : What an absolute treat! I love the combination of pungent salt, oil, and tart citrus. When a Caol Ila comes together it borders on greatness. I adore all the elements in this glass and the finish was absolutely brilliant. I think the nose might have been the highpoint, it had so much complexity, so many strong mental images and memories associated with it. I do wish the body had been a bit more complex, really that is all that kept it from ascending a bit higher.
This is definitely a bottle I would buy to have at home as it hits so many wonderful notes. There is a lot to love about Caol Ila and there is no lack of independently bottled single cask offerings. I have not had any older Caol Ila, so I am still curious how it changes with changes with additional time in the cask. Yet, these young bottles are so wonderfully brash with layers of delicious peaty notes that I can easily imagine a taster giving them a sip and calling out in the warehouse ‘bottle it now!’
