This is the last 25 year old in our little series of 25 year olds this week. Caol Ila is the most prolific of the Islay distilleries and as such you find a lot of Indie CI bottling around, most of them are good, and some older ones are fantastic. But, is this 25 yo OB a match?
The 25 yo was first introduced in 2010, and is bottled at 43% abv (yawn). As for pricing it is much better positioned than yesterday’s Aultmore 25, and at 148 Euro (whisky base shop here) , It’s not that expensive for a 25 year old. But is it worth it? Is the peat still kicking after 25 years in the cask, and is it as good as one can expect? Let’s dram…
Caol Ila 25 to, OB , 43% abv , € 148
Nose: This one certainly feels older: There are some lovely wood notes with oak and leather , sweet peat with vanilla and deep concentrated honey. Stewed fruit: Plum and pear. Demerara sugar The nose is indeed warm and reassuring. May bot be the most complex of noses, but It’s certainly good.
Palate: Starting sweet. Honey and spice. Giving way to some big peaty notes, to be honest I was expecting the peat to be more subdued than it really is. Seaweed and salt with sweet smoke. It’s a sort of coastal peat – an Islay for sure. Then getting woodier with Polish and dry oak. Pepper and plum.
Finish : Peat pepper, and spice. lingering smoke and sweet distant plums.
A very nice Coal Ila indeed. But lacking the exotic fruit notes of older CI I’ve come to like. If we’re talking about wood, it certainly has some, but it’s not the kind of lovely wood you get from a Bunnahabhain 25 for example. Yes, I know the peat is balancing it out, but still. This is rather balanced, and although the peat is stronger than I anticipated, It’s not overpowering the other aromas and flavors. A worthy 25 year old, at a good price (relatively), especially if you’re ordering from the EU and not UK (TWE stocks it for £154) . At any rate, I’d rather shell a few more pounds and buy the Bunnahabhain 25 yo which is much better and feels older and more majestic, at the costs of not being peaty- yes.
Score: 89/100
Cheers Ofer for the sample.