Whisky: Caol Ila 22 Year (1984), Scott's Selection

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 53.5%

Cask: Oak

Age: 22 Years (Distilled 1984, Bottled 2006)

Nose: Maritime, heather, pepper, charcoal grill, lemon, and lamp oil.

Palate: Medium-bodied, maritime brine, pungent charcoal grill, fireworks, peppercorns, salted butter.

Finish: Long and lingering notes of salt and gunpowder.

Score: 8

Image: Underground Maritime Grill-Off

Narrative & Notes: Narrative & Notes: The aroma brought to mind a binchōtan charcoal grill with fatty fish, herbs, salt, pepper, and lemon. Fat sizzled on hot coals and mixed with fragrant cedar wood, heather, and lamp oil; was I at a clandestine eel grill off? The palate was similar, with the savory sweetness of binchōtan coal and fireworks slowly revealing peppercorns and charred maritime fats. A lovely undercurrent of salt and butter lingered on the finish with subtle hints of stone and cordite.

Overall, this was excellent. It was far above what I expected from this bottle— I first tried a sample and loved it so much that I made an effort to get a bottle. Not something I often do! The dram was a bit odd and reminded me of Port Ellen to the point where, I am almost sure, if I were given this blind, I would have thought that was precisely what it was.

Of course, Port Ellen closed the year before this was distilled, so there is zero chance someone swapped a cask by accident. I did wonder if perhaps the distillery crew was trying to emulate the style of Port Ellen with this fermentation and distillation run— make sure there was plenty of future product available, or at least potentially replicable, for blending needs. Caol Ila is a bit of a Swiss army knife on Islay as it distills malts at different peat levels and fermentation times. It can produce a wide range of malts, but I have never quite had one like this— though I am bound to keep looking.