Caol Ila 14 Year Old 2000 Malts of Scotland

Hurray! Coal Ila! My favorite Islay whisky. My 58th one at that. And it is bottled by an indie with an quasi perfect reputation, so I can hardly wait to give this one a try. Let’s get to it!

The nose balances between sweet and brackish. Vanilla, apples and juicy pears on the one hand, diesel fumes, creosote and fish oil on the other. Nice balance. The whole is wrapped in an albeit discrete smoky blanket. It becomes more sweet if you leave it to breath. It is surprisingly soft, though.

Peat, salt, a lot of ginger and pepper leave no doubt. This is Islay pur sang. The oak also puts its foot down before the whole settles down and becomes more gentle – by the second sip – to allow the sweetness to shine through. Maritime start and wonderfully fruity in the middle. With water? I would not know. Totally redundant.

Long, sweet, warm and spicy finish.

I would not be surprised if this turned out to be a sister cask of the previously bottled Caol Ila 2000 for The Whiskyman. They are very similar. Around 100 EUR.

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