Whisky: Caol Ila 10 Year (2012), SMWS 53.428 "Scents of a haunted house"

Country/Region: Scotland/Islay

ABV: 60.6%

Cask: Refill Bourbon Barrel

Age: 10 Years (Distilled 7 March 2012)

Nose: Coastal and slightly medicine with maritime brine and burning herbs, charcoal grill smoked mixed with burning underbrush, slightly acrid at times, meaty and salty like grilled oysters at others; tar and beach bonfires with driftwood kindling.

Palate: Medium-bodied, meaty and coastal, smoking charcoal grill and brine ran throughout; fruity charred peppers, tingling Sichuan peppercorn, charred lemons, subtle sun-dried vanilla and coffee, meaty and spicy with cracked black pepper jerky at the end.

Finish: Medium-length, coastal salt and a beachside bonfire.

Score: 7 (82)

Mental Image: Moonlight Beach Bash

Narrative & Notes: I tried this blind with our local whisky club as part of a blind face-off in which one member put their bottle-selecting skills against a trio of single casks selected by Neil Patrick Harris for SMWS. The only rule was that he stick to a similar budget as the SMWS series.

This bottle came fifth in the lineup, and I guessed it was the Caol Ila selected by Neil Patrick Harris for SMWS. The balanced notes of citrus, brine, and medicinal herbs had Caol Ila written all over them, though I have not had many with quite this much smoke to it.

I was right! It was nice having some idea of what half of the whiskies could be; typically, if I do a blind tasting, it is totally blind, and I have no idea what it could possibly be.  This was good for the ego as I correctly picked out all three of the SMWS picks and managed one totally blind shot in the dark for the other three.

Caol Ila bottles, with a similar age and stats, are a dime a dozen; they typically have a high floor but a low ceiling, so standing out can be difficult. This was not the best I have had, but it was not far off either. It bore some semblance to two younger sibling casks I reviewed (SMWS 53.276 at 6 Years and SMWS 53.325 at 7 Years and with a Madeira finish), and I am curious to see how this lot of casks ages as it felt like the malt lost little of its intensity with three more years in the cask.

Overall, hard to go wrong with a good Caol Ila.