Caol Ila 8 Year Old 2014 - Benchmark (Murray McDavid) | 700ML

A relatively youthful peated single malt from Caol Ila, distilled in 2014 and finished in French oak barriques that previously held French red wine from Pomerol for two-and-a-half years. It was bottled by Murray McDavid in 2022 for the Benchmark series with an outturn of 1,399 bottles at a generous 50% ABV.

Caol Ila 8 Year Old 2014 - Benchmark (Murray McDavid) | 700ML Tasting Notes

Nose: Red grape, orchard fruit, smouldering embers, and coastal sea breeze.

Palate: Burnt florals, flamed orange peel, golden syrup, and peat smoke.

Finish: Oily smoke, red apple, spicy oak, and aromatic smoke.

Distillery Information

Caol Ila was founded to the North of Islay in 1846 by the pleasingly-named Hector Henderson. It is located near Port Askaig and sits in lush, floral surroundings, overlooking the cove and the Paps of southern Jura. The distillery draws its water from Loch Nam Ban, whose waters travel through limestone and peat before reaching their beneficiary, Caol Ila. The whisky distillery was sold to Norman Buchanan in 1852 and then, following monetary hardship, to the Glasgow-based blenders Bulloch, Lade and Co who renovated the buildings in 1879. Following liquidation, Distillers Company Ltd acquired Caol Ila and the distillery was subsequently transferred to Scottish Malt Distillers. The capacity is moderate at 3.65 million litres annually, the majority of which is used in Johnnie Walker blends. Just 5% is kept for maturation as single malt. From 1999, unpeated single malts have been experimented with and in 2006 the first unpeated bottling was released in the form of an eight year-old. Caol Ila, whose name derives from the Gaelic for ‘Sound of Islay’, has been included in the Diageo Classic Malts range, exhibiting twelve and eighteen year-old expressions as well as a Moscatel-finished Distillers Edition. Independent bottlings can also be found.

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