Caol Ila 9 yo Shieldaig Collection (1999/2008)

We bought this malt at Milano Whisky Festival, in 2010.

N: this Caol Ila is pungent, the 43% are pretty aggressive. It's a bit tart, strongly peated rather than smoky. In the backdrop, but very covered, we find lemon notes and some vanilla, but it's all somehow hidden.

P: pure sea. It's all played on peat, gentle but dominant, rather salty, smoky. This Shieldaig is very dry, far away from that creamy smoothness typical in many other Caol Ila expressions. Lemon again, maybe sea weed. Marine and mineral.

F: quite long standing, but again it's all about peat. Salty in the end.

This Shieldaig is monodimensional and represents the most coastal side of the distillery: complexity is unfamiliar for this malt and honestly it's not unforgettable. Anyway, we would label it as a decent product and -in a certain sense- didactic: it allows us to detect the marine dimension of Islay, alone and clear. The wood influence (2 or 3 bourbon casks) is really minimal. Our low rate is influenced by this reason: we love Caol Ila malts, because they are usually able to combine the marine shape with a kind of sweetness.

P.S: try to nose your empty glass: nor wood nor any sweetness or spices. Simply nothing! Curious, isn't it?, even if befitting...

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