
December 27, 2023

The New Time Warp Sessions, Today a few Caol Ila 2013 - 1972 (and wines)

We like to do this, to select whiskies somewhat at random and without absolute logic, as long as they all come from the same distillery. In this case, Caol Ila, a reliable choice as everyone knows. And perhaps we'll even have two or three from the old distillery, distilled before the demolition and then the reconstruction from 1972 – 1974.

Caol Ila 10 yo 2013/2023 (56.7%, Lady of the Glen, Ruby Port finish, cask # #316112, 299 bottles)

We are amidst a full-on invasion of wine casks in malt whisky, and the little ruby Ports are no exception. Thank goodness, our friends are getting better and better at handling these peculiar things, and many are no longer so off-putting, and usually without the scents of raspberry detectable from five metres away. But others are, indeed. Colour: orange. Yes, indeed. Nose: it's alright, it leans a bit towards rum, with quite a bit of brown sugar, crème brûlée, nougat, muscovado sugar... As you've gathered, there aren't as many red fruits, almost none at all. On the other hand, the smoke is pretty, like oranges that have been barbecued. With water: a slightly sulphurous aspect now, a bit of town gas, aubergines, new leather, but also tarte tatin and dried seaweed on the beach. Mouth (neat): smoke, slightly burnt caramel, pepper and cloves, then a lot of juniper. A Dutch aspect, we might say. With water: leather, orange zest, pipe tobacco, marmalade, cumin. Finish: long, with almost identical notes, then more salt. Comments: a young Caol Ila, quite thick, not bad at all once you get used to it. Very Scotch malt 3.0 (cask-driven); frankly, it works.
SGP:565 - 85 points.

Caol Ila 15 yo 2007/2023 (59.9%, Elixir Distillers, The Single Malts of Scotland, LMDW, New Vibrations, cask # 320281, 283 bottles)

There's no doubting here. Colour: white wine. Nose: the exact opposite of the 'Lady', with much more maritime purity, fresh oysters and crabs, manzanilla, langoustines, seaweed (wakame), broken branches, with a hint of gorse and carnation way in the background, and of course lemon and a bit of vanilla. With water: no joke, it's manzanilla. Mouth (neat): who could argue with this lemon juice laced with iodine, seawater, oysters, green pepper, mercurochrome, and cigar ashes? With water: even smokier, and saltier too. It becomes 'pointed' and even a bit feisty. Finish: very long, more peppery but with just as much salinity. Lemon liqueur and verbena in the aftertaste. Comments: it's still young and very tense, but class speaks volumes.
SGP:667 - 87 points.

Caol Ila 14 yo 2008/2023 (53.8%, Milroy's, Soho Selection, 1st fill palo cortado octave, cask #314557E)

Aged in a refill hogshead and 're-racked' in 2021 in palo cortado. So, back to very active casks… Colour: amber. Nose: palo cortado works, I believe it's not 'sherry' they would make hastily just to season bespoke sherry casks for the whisky business. Apricot jam, touch of seawater, gorse, cigarettes, roasted and honeyed pecans, smoked ham, pinesap bonbons… It's just awesome. With water: old apples, medlars, jujubes, mead, sweet white wine (petit manseng), rose petals… Mouth (neat): spicy and floral, a little unlikely in that respect but in fact, I love this. Big bacon seasoned/cured with flower jellies, apricot jam and honey. With water: more floral yet, towards pure meadows honey. It's become stunning – as long as you love honey as much as I do. Finish: medium, sweet, ultra-honeyed. Comments: it's a spectacular, unusual baby, worth chasing down but I believe they did not produce too many bottles. The honey almost 'ate' the peat, seriously.
SGP:754 - 88 points.

Oh, naturally…

Caol, Ila 12 yo (43%, OB, +/-2023)

Caol Ila 12 yo (43%, OB, +/-2023)

Would you imagine that we last tried the official 12 in 2018, while it was even a 2017 batch? But it's been very good (WF 86). When you distill more than 6 million litres of pure alcohol per year (the current capacity), I'd wager you had the opportunity of selecting particularly successful casks. Colour: straw. Nose: yes, of course, it's quite compelling, very well-balanced, fresh and coastal, with the notable green apple, prawns, oysters, smoked fish, and ashes in the fireplace. Or in the ashtray. Mouth: a touch of vanilla roundness, peaches, or rather lemon, charcoal, sea water, whelks and periwinkles, fine oysters, green olives, mild chilli, pastis, lemon, gentian and a bit of fresh ginger... Finish: rather long and fresh, citrusy, with a very attractive salinity. The oysters make a comeback in the aftertaste. Comments: am I dreaming, or has this little Caol Ila 12 gotten even better? But be wary, at 43% ABV, it goes down quite easily.
SGP:556 - 87 points.

Caol Ila 13 yo 2009/2023 (55.2%, The Dava Way, LMDW, New Vibrations, hogshead)

Colour: white wine. Nose: It's the 12-year-old with a bit more punch, simply put, giving it a slightly more medicinal quality, with a stronger presence of mercurochrome and iodine tincture. Little else differs. With water: the same, plus some notes of vine peach and acacia flower. Palate (neat): the same feeling, the 12-year-old is sharper, but the foundation is virtually the same. With water: likewise, just a touch more incisive and medicinal. Finish: the same. Comments: same and excellent. And thus, inevitably...
SGP:556 - 87 points.

Caol Ila 1972/1987 (40%, Jas. Gordon & Co., Celtic label, Auxil Import France)

1972 was a pivotal year since the old Caol Ila distillery was demolished, then rebuilt and expanded on the same site to increase from two to six stills. The new Caol Ila resumed production in 1974, which is why if you come across Caol Ila 1973, you should probably run the other way. In any case, here we are with one of the very last versions created in the old distillery, reputed to be peatier, coaly, and wild. Jas. Gordon, short for James Gordon, was a sub-brand for certain markets of the famous Gordon & MacPhail house. Couleur : straw. Nose: even at 40% ABV, the old Caol Ilas demonstrate some power, with a gorgeous smoke reminiscent of an old oil stove that's backdrafting a bit, carbon, pencil lead, charcoal, or even a bonfire on the beach with driftwood and dry seaweed. There's also a bit of fat, tallow, some cough syrup notes, cough lozenges, and then fruitier touches, like in all these old peated whiskies from Islay, but here it's rather the bergamot that takes over from Bowmore's famous mango or Laphroaig's passion fruit. Mouth: here too we are surprised by the depth and lack of weakness in this old malt which will have nonetheless spent nearly forty years in a simple screw-cap bottle. The same fattiness (bacon), the smoky and medicinal side, bergamots and yuzu, a bit of pine sap, then a growing salinity... One could come to prefer these lower degrees to the full proof and other cask strengths. You are right, let's not exaggerate... Finish: lighter, which is quite normal, but still very evocative of Islay. You could almost hear some old sea shanties in a pub on the island; after all, the Ileachs are known to sing in tune even after a few too many drinks. Comment: very similar to the 15-year-old 1972 offered under the Connoisseurs Choice banner by Gordon & MacPhail. I have never compared them, but they might well house the same juice.
SGP :544 - 91 points.

Caol Ila 25 yo 1976/2001 (59.9%, Signatory Vintage for LMDW, Straight From The Cask, hogshead, cask #8087, 423 bottles)

This one was distilled two years after the distillery's reconstruction, so it can be assumed that some final adjustments had been made. However, 1976 remains a rather rare vintage on the market, perhaps, this is purely speculative, because the blenders of the big brands in the group, like Johnnie Walker, needed the entire production while at the same time, Brora had begun to reduce the peat level in its wonderful distillate. It's true that there often were little games of musical chairs within the four aces of peat of the D.C.L. (Brora, Caol Ila, Lagavulin, Port Ellen). Colour: pale gold. Nose: there's this increased purity of Caol Ila, always kind of purer than Lagavulin although the malt used was said to be the same. The stills are so different! We are thus in the presence of a very coastal profile, marked by seaweed, sea spray, oysters, and driftwood, then smoked fish specialties, also anchovies, bottarga, glasswort, all the crabs fished in the Sound of Islay, right next to the distillery... All of this only intensifies after adding water, everything becomes even more marine and salty. Chalky notes complete the picture. Mouth: very powerful, of course, the very maritime side of these Caol Ilas is present, with notes reminiscent of boat ropes, tar, teak oil, motor oil, and especially ashes. Grape seed oil and lime follow suit, one would think of Sancerre once again. A few drops of water will relax the malt but at the same time further reinforce the, let's say, 'fishy' and even medicinal side. Rollmops and gauze strips, why not? It remains very peaty, as peaty as Lagavulin for sure. And perhaps even as peaty as Port Ellen... Finish: very long, always pure, always totally coastal. You've just come back from a long walk on the beach ended by a visit to the port where some old trawlers were being repaired. There's an impression of tar and motor oil in the aftertaste. Comment: alas this style started to be a little less in demand while the famous whisky loch was filling up, Scottish whisky supply beginning to outstrip demand. It was a few years later that Caol Ila also began producing unpeated malt, the famous "Highland Caol Ila" which was to fill certain gaps created by the sudden closure of dozens of distilleries within the group, starting in 1983. But that's another story.
SGP: 556 – 91 points

Check the index of all Caol ila we've tasted so far