Wholly Smoke

I found this diamond in the rough recently at an estate sale and only paid $20 dollars. I had never seen the brand before, but “Islay Blended Malt” caught my eye, so I knew it would be good. Later, after reading the fine print, I got another surprise. It read “Produced & Bottled in Scotland by Macdonald & Muir.” Wow, this malt was primarily “Ardbeg.” For those that don’t know the history: Macdonald & Muir was founded in 1893 by whisky entrepreneurs Roderick Macdonald and Alexander Muir. The company has had a rich history. The Glenmorangie distillery, established in 1843, played a significant role in their journey. In 1918, Macdonald & Muir acquired a 40% stake in the company, gradually gaining full control in the 1930s. In 1997, under the umbrella of MacDonald and Muir, Glenmorangie acquired the dilapidated Ardbeg distillery on Islay from Allied Distillers for £7 million. Then in 2004, the French conglomerate LVMH acquired Macdonald & Muir for £300 million, leaving their UK structure intact still to this day. Recently, Macdonald & Muir has embarked on a new chapter by purchasing The Islay Hotel in Port Ellen. With plans to transform it into a premier whisky and hospitality destination, the company aims to enhance the Islay whisky experience for visitors. This 10yo blended malt was bottled around 2011. Open recently, its cork came out in pieces. Wonderfully smoky, its Ardbeg roots are unmistakable. The other piece of this is likely Caol Ila, which Diageo makes available for outsourcing and blending. If you know your Islay whiskies, then you can already imagine what this is like. Superb!