Coal Ila

This gem from Islay displays a delicate peat smoke but also has a lovely fruity flavour and a cracking meaty finish, highlighting the characteristic you?d expect from a peaty Islay dram and more.

Distillery : Caol Ila
Age: 12
%Volume: 46
Volume (ml): 700
Cask Type: 100% Bourbon
Spirit Region: Islay

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Faint candle smoke, peppermint, toasted marshmallows.

Flavour: Stewed apples, vanilla yoghurt, kiwi fruit.

Finish: Burning coals, honey ham, salted caramel.

Matured for a total of 13 years, the final 2 years of this Caol Ila were spent finishing in ex-Sassicaia red wine casks, a 'super Tuscan' red wine from Italy. The cask shows its character immediately with blackcurrant, dried fig and black forest fruitiness wrapping around Caol Ila's meaty peat smoke. The smoke and fruit mingle together, combining to create a distinctive fruity, peaty concoction that has made this on-going release from G&M so popular.

Caol Ila is one of Islay's best loved distilleries and this 12 year old is their entry level bottling. This expression is light and fresh with that distinctive Caol Ila smoke and notes of zesty limoncello. A prefect introduction to the joys of Islay malt and the mercurial qualities of peat smoked whisky.

Caol Ila is one of Islay's best loved distilleries and this 12 year old is their entry level bottling.

This expression is light and fresh with that distinctive Caol Ila smoke and notes of zesty limoncello. A perfect introduction to the joys of Islay malt and the mercurial qualities of peat smoked whisky.

The yearly Diageo Special Releases always pack some surprises and it's fair to say an unpeated Caol Ila is probably one of them. This single malt Scotch promotes the distillery's lesser-known side as a sherry-forward Caol Ila that swaps smoke for elegant sweetness. It was matured for 15 years in refill and rejuvenated American-oak hogsheads and ex-bodega European oak butts before it was bottled at a cask strength 59.1% ABV.

Nose: Opens with marmalade-laden buttery toast, milk chocolate and fresh orange notes, before red cherry, strawberry and raisin comes through. Lashes of vanilla and a suggestion of spearmint, too.

Palate: Leads with more of that creamy chocolate, fruity yoghurt and honey. Peach is in there too, and in with all the oiliness is a pine-like quality.

Finish: Yoghurt-covered almonds with some liquorice and, yes, some distant smoke.

Overall: It's an viscous drop that packs a creamy-fruity punch.

This unpeated limited edition natural cask strength Caol Ila has been aged in ex-bourbon American Oak barrels that give it a rounded, mature character.

As clean and fresh as the pale sky that follows clearing rain, its intense flavours dance boldly across the tongue like flecks of foam over the wind-lashed waves.

A wonderfully balanced expression from the core Caol Ila range, this 18 year old is malty and thick with notes of Caol Ila smoke and phenols, a lovely Islay single malt without extreme levels of peat.

Nose: Aromatic, darkness. Herbal, vegetal. Grassy, creamy malt.

Palate: Big, refined sweetness, leafy. Well integrated oak, smoke, oily, peat. Barley.

Finish: Long, herbal notes, gentle smoke, soft peat. Oily wood.

A fab Caol Ila from the Distillers Edition series, distilled in 2006. Before it was bottled in 2018, it spent a period finishing in casks which previously held Moscatel sherry, so you can imagine the balance of sweet, savoury and smoke in this Islay whisky!

Nose: Buttered toast and marmalade, with oaky vanilla and sea-washed pebbles.

Palate: Peat smoke supports notes of creamy porridge, apricot jam and figs, with a drizzle of honey.

Finish: More dried apricot and maritime smoke, with candied citrus and a herbaceous backdrop.

Moch is Gaelic for dawn, and this release from Caol Ila is an altogether lighter prospect than the distillery's excellent 12 year old standard expression.

Nose: Lemon sherbet and apple crumble topping with custard. Dry grass and not a hint of smoke.

Palate: Sweet lemon meringue pie and soft, very soft mouthfeel. The peat hits a third of the way in but it's restrained; soothing wood smoke rather than burning tyres, and it retains a sweetness throughout.

Finish: Soft drying smoke.

Introducing the Firkin Islay - A peat & smoke fest taking Islay to another level!

The Islay is an Islay Single-Malt Scotch Whisky - Distilled at the legendary Caol Ila Distillery 2010.

Call the fire brigade! This has everything: big burning embers, smoky bonfire and a tad of oak with peppery lively spirit. Dig a little deeper for the malt and creamy oak middle holding it all together. So chewy and smoky.

Sweet vanilla and dry cured meat aromas.  Peat smoke undertones are complemented by banana and apricot.

Ripe Banana, kiwi and vibrant hints of fresh citrus, leading to a long, sweet and smoky finish.

Caol Ila 10yo First Fill Amontillado Sherry Hogshead Cask Finish #306695 

Nose
Ashy and fruity ? smoked pears, quince jelly, strawberry, greengage and liquorice root.

Taste
Earthy, sweet smoke, paired with salted liquorice, physalis and freshly squeezed lime juice.

Finish
Smoked pears, lemon rind and freshly baked dough.