with christmas just around the corner, 'tis the season this whisky wednesday to be enjoying a dram (or two) fit for the occasion, and i recently had the privilege of trying this special christmas bottling of a Caol Ila 2008 from The Single Cask.
these lovely bottles were specially designed for the season, with some sporting a festive red label and others a christmassy green one. the side of the bottle also has the witty greeting of "whisky you a merry christmas" - indeed, what would the end-of-year celebrations be without a good dram of a great whisky?
this eleven-year-old Caol Ila (57.1% alcohol by volume) is a beautifully natural light golden colour in the bottle, and the first sniffs from the glass just sing with the distillery's trademark smooth peated smoke over a delicious sweetness not unlike the burnt sugar glaze over a good creme brulee. this was simply a pleasure to enjoy nosing, as slight hints of orange and other citrus fruits emerged over time to layer their aromas with the sweet smoke.
on the palate, the smoke continues to astound with its light yet refined character. the sweetness has also developed into more of a caramel, featuring less of the sugar in its own right and more of a sticky syrupyness that brings out the smooth smokiness. this is also pretty complex, with hints of fruit lending their personalities to the overall blend such that it evolves in a beautiful choreographed ballet on the tongue, and changes ever so slightly with each sip.
the finish is lovely, medium length with the characteristic Caol Ila smoke reluctantly taking its leave as the sweet fruits fade. it's an amazing whisky and i'm so glad to have had the privilege to try this one, especially since only 233 bottles were produced. co-owner Brendan Pillai of The Single Cask in Singapore has really selected a winner with this cask, and judging from the fill level of this bottle here, i'm definitely not the only person who shares that view.
this advent, here's "whisky"-ing everyone a very merry christmas indeed, and let's raise our glasses to a better year to come in 2021. slàinte!
==
this undercover review is of a product that was provided to me for free, though i wasn’t asked to review this as a condition of purchase and didn’t receive any incentives for writing this. i’m not affiliated with The Single Cask, and as always, all opinions remain my own.
all information correct at time of publishing.
Comments
Post a Comment