Mackillop’s Choice Caol Ila 1991 (26 year old) 50.4%
Bourbon Cask 4678/ Dist: Mar 1991 Btl: Sept 2017/ Tasted: Nov 2017
A heavy, oily nose with granulated sugar coated sweet barley, iodine, brine, liquorice root and subtle, medicinal peat. Amazingly vibrant for it’s age with an underlying strata of apricot and unsweetened melon.
The palate opens with the heavy, oily spirit character and subtle, mature apricot and apple. Dusty peat, violets and salt follow. Lovely granulated sugar and briny middle with underpinning malt and honey. The oak adds hints of coffee, liquorice and subtle spice. Long, vibrant and salty with a beautifully juicy finish that displays loads of parma violets and liquorice. Slightly treacly/ tarry after-taste.
Mackillop’s Choice Caol Ila 1981 (30 year old) 56.9%
Bourbon Cask 3234/ Dist: 1981 Btl: March 2012/ Tasted: Aug 2012
Seriously mature aromas with an almost rum-like or old grain whisky demeanour. Lashings of dried fruit and mature oak with hints of medicinal, briny peat, lemon and dusty smoke. It has to be said that it takes quite a while before those aromas break free of the oxidised, dried fruit shackles, but when they do, the nose is truly magnificent. Now it’s augmented by a lightly scented citrus note and the salinity comes through with some determination. Very, very complex with a late herbal/ camphor note.
The palate is a touch on the woody side, which can be forgiven and those rum like dried fruits are definitely in eveidance. Lightly fishy with the dry peat building rather pleasantly. Quite a refreshing middle as the lemon arrives and it fades rather magnificently into a mature oak and peat smoke finish. Very mouth-filling with a late herbal white fruit note.
Dilution makes the nose more floral with the lemon aromas displaying a lovely purity and slight crystallised character. Still quite full and fleshy though. The palate is a little sweeter, with more of a castor sugar coating to the fruit. A bit less complex now maybe but like the nose itg has a lovely purity of lemon notes. Personally I would drink this neat as the palate does become a tad over confected but there’s a light parma violet and bog myrtle note in the finish.
Whisky According to Chris Whiskyman 