Provenance by Douglas Laing Port Ellen 26yo 1983

(could be sherry butt no. DMG 5746, dist Spring 83, bottled Winter 2010).

This was another sample my wife purchased for me. I don’t claim this as a definitive review of this whisky. Rather, this is simply my snap shot impression.

Nose: Starting off musty; I’ll give it time. After a few minutes. Light delicate peat. Very much in the style of Caol Ila as opposed to one of the big 3 (Lag, Lap, & Ardbeg). It is an earthy, waxy, and black dirt style of peat. There are some fruity notes . . . but only hints that disappear and evade identification before they can be quantified and categorized. There are some sherry notes as well as malt. But everything really seems to be doing a wonderful dance around the delicate smoke with the peat as the delicate foundation. With more time the malt, fruit, and sherry really start coming to the fore while the peat really moves to the background. That said it is really well balanced. I am impressed with that more then anything. Ya, after more time the peat comes back to play. This is a wonderfully evocative nose that seems to evade any attempt to pin it down.

Taste: Sweet peat and malt, but not as sweet as the Caol Ila 12yo. Very malty. Some peat, and a bit of smoke. Maybe a hint of soap when held for a while on the tongue? With water it is very smooth and malty but not much else come out.

Finish: It does that in take of breath . . . and now comes the gentle wave of peat, sea salt, iodine, and it just gently laps at your feet. There is evidence of a beach fire with hints of burnt wood, smoke, and cinders. As gentle an Islay peat finish as I could imagine. There is that strong peat note but with an undercurrent of ripe fruit of the red and purple variety. But still a lingering earthy peat on the tongue (that was hinted at in the nose). Really, quite lovely in a delicate balance sort of way.

Complexity, Balance: This is extremely complex in the sense that you can’t really tease out a concrete examples of what exactly you are smelling. The balance is such that everything is moving around in a very intricate and delicate dance. The peat is here, then the fruit, then the smoke, then the oak, now dirt, now sherry, and now . . . and the balance across the board was amazing. The only slight dip was on the taste.

Aesthetic experience: Darkest of the night. Must have been a sherry butt. I don’t love the McGibbon Provenance label, or the 46% ABV (I wish for over $200 that it was cask strength). But at least I am assured that it is ncf with no coloring.

Conclusion: This really surprised me. I don’t go gaga over Port Ellen. And I don’t go gaga over 46% ABV. That said . . . I really liked this sample. This is a Port Ellen I would actually put crazy money up for. Luckily, I can’t find it.