Signatory Caol Ila 2012 46%

Tasting Notes

Andrew's Tasting Note

Nose: classic young spirit driven Caol Ila... briny, bacon-wrapped scallops, chewy malt, and beach bonfire smoke; lemon zest and lime flavoured tortillas chips; flaky kippers, and muddy peat.

Palate: sweet, brinny, and malty with more beach bonfire smoke and tarry oils; more bacon-wrapped scallops drizzled in honey and lemon-butter; seaweed salad, more salty smoked kippers, ceviche, and lime flavoured tortillas.

Finish: tarry, oily, and peaty with clean smoke, citrus, and savoury seafood.

Comment: this is everything you want in a vigorous young Caol Ila, and at a great drinking strength too!

Distillery

The Following was written by Andrew Ferguson for the June 2018 edition of Celtic Life Magazine.

Scotland’s Caol Ila distillery is named for the body of water it gazes across, the majestic ‘Sound of Islay’ - a narrow but turbulent ribbon of water separating the islands of Islay and Jura.

The distillery is built almost precariously into the rocks of a steep embankment on a tiny bay. As with all of Islay’s distilleries, Caol Ila had to be supplied exclusively by sea until the middle of the 2oth century. Ships full of barley and oak barrels from the mainland sought a safe anchor from the tempestuous North Atlantic sea. They would return to the mainland with casks of the peaty, smoky, single malt whisky which Islay is still famous for. Then, as today, the vast majority of these casks were destined for blending.

Caol Ila - pronounced “cul-ee-lah” - is a facility full of contradictions. It is, by some margin, the largest of Islay’s eight active distilleries, but it also produces one of Scotland’s most dependable whiskies. Whisky Advocate Magazine refers to the distillery as ‘Mr. Consistent’ - a reflection on how few poor bottlings and casks of the whisky are in the marketplace. Is the size of the distillery and its efficiencies counterintuitively an asset? Perhaps, but these factors also make it one of the least interesting distilleries to visit on Islay, with one crucial footnote; the view from the Still Room at Caol Ila is unrivalled by any other distillery in Scotland, and possibly the world.

The Still Room’s floor-to-ceiling windows offer a panoramic view across the Sound of Islay to the dramatic Isle of Jura beyond. Whales, dolphins and sea otters all frolic in the waters out front, while the sun and clouds take turns revealing and obscuring the wilds of Jura.

In addition to the distilleries, there is much to see on Islay. One would be hard pressed, in fact, to see all eight of the island’s active distilleries in three or four days. I am torn when asked to recommend which distilleries visitors should see; in a perfect world the answer would be all of them. Islay is, after all, Mecca for disciples of malt whisky gospel. But when a distillery needs to be cut, Coal Ila is often the first on the chopping block. Other than the view, the distillery isn’t all that interesting compared with its neighbours.

Although its output is two and three times that of the next largest distilleries, almost none of Caol Ila’s production is matured on the island. More than 99 per cent of its whisky matures in warehouses on the mainland.

The vast majority of Caol Ila’s production is earmarked for blends - most importantly the world’s second bestselling blended scotch whisky, Johnny Walker Black Label. While less than 5 per cent of the distillery’s production is set aside for bottling as single malt by the owners, Diageo, a quirk of the Scotch whisky industry’s supply chains has made Caol Ila the most widely available Islay single malt from independent bottlers. Whisky companies trade casks with one another to add complexity to their blends. Some of these casks find their way into the hands of independent bottlers; Gordon MacPhail, the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Port Askaig, and others regularly bottle excellent single cask and small-batch bottlings of Caol Ila.

If you make the trek to Islay (and you should), and have the time, be sure to pop by Caol Ila to admire the view. Whether on tour from the Still Room or from the pier in front of the distillery, the views of the Sound of Islay and Jura - regardless of the weather - will take your breath away. More importantly, try every bottling of the whisky you can find; few, if any, of ‘Mr. Consistent’ are likely to disappoint!

Independent Bottler

Signatory Vintage was established in 1988 by Andrew Symington. The quality of whiskies released by most Independent Bottlers can vary a lot, and be rather hit or miss. Signatory Vintage is an exception to this, and we have consistently been impressed by the quality of its offerings. Accordingly Signatory Vintage has been a staple in our shop for more than a decade.

One of the reasons for Signatory's consistently high level of quality is that it doesn't bottle casks in the hand-to-mouth fashion, of many other independent bottlers. But rather it purchases parcels of casks, storing them in their own warehouses, while patiently waiting for the whiskies to mature.

Originally located in Edinburgh, the business was moved to Pitlochry in 2002, after Symington purchased the Edradour Distillery from Pernod Ricard. Edradour is tucked into the hills above the scenic Highland town of Pitlochry. This farm distillery has a charming, rustic, and understated esthetic, which was maintained by Symington when building a new bottling facility and warehousing.

The distillery bottles single cask and small batch bottlings of both single malts and single grains. Its ranges include the Un-Chill Filtered and Cask Strength Collections. In 1988 the firm celebrated its 30th Anniversary with a range of specially chosen, exceptionally rare single casks.