Caol Ila 18 Year

6/23/10 - (KM)

- 2010 Maltzman Mannor

Nose-grass, heather nice Taste - very light peat, heather, slightly medicinal Finish - weak

Delicate nose with smoke and oak. In mouth the influence of the cask and oak shows, making the peat less aggressive. Sweet notes and nice roundness and warmth in mouth too. Not very maritime and well balanced.

Smoky, sweet on the nose. Rich sweet and smoky on the palate.

Love this one as a friendly companion on a ever-chilling evening following the first warm day of the year. Just the perfect age for a refined Peated Islay imo, highlighting the peat enough in the foreground without being overpowering nor fading away. Sometimes I mix (“blend”) this with the 18 Unpeated cask strength at a 2:1 ratio, to increase the abv and add characteristics of a more dominant malt. Either way, excellent Scotch

My scoring system will give this dram a 91 over 100, but it really feels like less. It is a good dram, but i prefer the 12yo one. Bottled at 43%abv with a pale staw color. On the nose, the peat is lovely, that "fresh can of tennis balls" or "permanent marker" type of peat. Pepper and champagne. Lovely. On the palate is nice but kinda boring. There are ashes everywhere, very very soft dram, oranges and cough syrup. The finish is the best part. Eternal. With a soft spicy mint note. Overall i give this dram a 91 over 100, buy a sample and decide for yourself. I would buy the 12yo over this one.