Whisky Connosr
Menu
Buy Whisky Online

Port Askaig Cask Strength

Suspiciously Caol Ila-like

0 487

@jdcookReview by @jdcook

15th Mar 2010

0

Port Askaig Cask Strength
  • Nose
    23
  • Taste
    22
  • Finish
    20
  • Balance
    22
  • Overall
    87

Show rating data charts

Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

This is the last of the three malts I bought on my holiday travels at the recommendation of the gents working at Nicks Wine Merchants. He said that if I liked any of the Caol Ila offerings, I would like this.

Immediately upon opening the bottle I am hit with the similarity. The Port Askaig has a similar vegetative mossy peat smell that hits as soon as the cork comes out. After pouring and taking a minute or two to let the glass and whisky warm in my hand, it opens up with hints of old leather, tobacco, peat smoke, brine, with subtle fruity and vanilla notes. A lot of depth here!

The taste is filled with moss, oak, rich damp earth and a hint of honey over a warm wave of peat, smoke with subtle notes of brine and a gentle spicy tingle. Mouth-watering.

The finish is of medium length, lasting around 5 minutes, and is a continuation of the taste as the more subtle flavours of honey, brine and spice slowly fade leaving behind the dominating damp, mossy peat smoke as this drams finale.

There is a rumour that the Port Askaig is rumoured to be a rebranding of Caol Ila spirit, and I can see why. It is fairly similar in base taste to the Caol Ila 8 year old bottling I have. I don't know if it is or not, but it is certainly good enough for me not to care!

Find where to buy Port Askaig whisky

Nose:

Body:

Palate:

Related Port Askaig reviews

Read more Port Askaig Cask Strength reviews

4 comments

@galg
galg commented

isnt CI 8 years old an Unpeated version of CI? and yes, all signs point to Coal Ila... look at the map, how close PA is to CI... Slainte.

14 years ago 0

@jdcook
jdcook commented

I have an independently bottled Caol Ila 8 year old, not the 8 year old released by Caol Ila themselves.

14 years ago 0

@olivier
olivier commented

You refer to a 5-minute finish as medium length. I would probably have called it long (5 real minutes is a long long time). What is the consensus out there ?

14 years ago 0

@jdcook
jdcook commented

Finish means different things to different people. I mean the time it takes for all warmth to have disappeared, and you are no longer experiencing any flavours. So 5 minutes isn't that long. Others refer to it as the initial hit and fade (which for a lot of whiskies is only 30 seconds to a minute) when the flavours are distinctive, and the warmth is more than just a residual memory.

So 5 minutes for me is maybe on the long side of par, but not by much.

14 years ago 0