Nose is honeysuckle on the vine, with a background of salt spray and a vanilla chaser. A drop of water and 10 minutes adds cooked pancetta to the aroma, and a swirl of the glass can elicit a nice burned oak smell. Interesting and pleasing, but not overly complex, and a nice segue to the palate. Opens a bit richer than you'd expect from the nose, with a nice fullness and a rich, borderline-oily, texture. Lemongrass, fresh cut hay, and salted vanilla creme lead to a smoky middle where the peat and the barrel char and the sea salt take you to a clean, crisp close with just a touch of smoke lingering. Very nicely balanced, and interesting enough to keep you coming back but not so deep that it requires a lot of contemplation. In short, this is a perfect dram for any occasion. Sure it's from an "undisclosed distillery", but we all know where this came from. If you'd love to have a slightly lighter version of Caol Ila 12, without the artificial scarcity and random pricing, this is the bottle to grab. It's also nice that Total Wine seems to keep it in stock at a very reasonable $55.
55.0
USD
per
Bottle
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