Friday Tasting Preview #2: My Burn's Night Dram

Not one to miss out on the blindingly obvious, I reckon that the perfect theme for this Friday's Mini Tasting is Single Malt Whisky, just in time for Burn's Night on Tuesday.  We'll be sampling the whisky of four distilleries from across Scotland, but my preview is a beautifully balanced Islay malt.

Connoisseur's Choice, Caol Ila 1998  £35.50
Now, whilst I appreciate malt whisky wherever it comes from, I'm a bit single minded in my personal consumption - I just love Islay malts.   Anyone who's visited the island and smelt it's salty, peat smoke aroma and then tasted the whiskies will attest to their expression of terroir, a concept more familiar in the hands of Burgundian winemakers.
Though perhaps less exalted than its neighbours, Caol Ila is the largest distillery on Islay and much of its production goes into Johnny Walker.  The best expressions carry a sweet maltiness under the peat smoke which make it more approachable than monsters like Laphroaig.

Tasted neat, the nose is full of peat ash and marmite with just a hint of salinity.  Whilst the palate is drying the peat doesn't dominate, and though it's difficult to find the richness that sherry casks should impart, there's a really evocative seaweed character here.  A drop of water (distillers often taste at around 20% ABV where the full spectrum of flavours is most evident) softens the smoke revealing delicate tea and apple peel flavours. I'm surprised by the lightness of touch here as I was expecting more power - but this is truly impressive for a 12 year old malt.

Tecchie Stuff:  Malt from the Port Ellen distillery with phenolics (peat influence) of 35ppm.  Spirit distilled in 1998 was aged in refill sherry casks by independent bottlers Gordon and Macphail and bottled in 2010 at 43%ABV.

Make your mind up this Friday Evening (21st Jan) from 5pm by tasting this alongside three other exciting single malts.