Caol Ila 2006 (G&M for The Bonding Dram)

After the Glen Grant 1948, here’s another side of Gordon & MacPhail…

The Belgian retailer The Bonding Dram picked this Caol Ila 2006 from the Gordon & MacPhail stocks. It was a joint bottling with the Flemish Malt Whisky Society, a whisky club based in the same region.

Caol Ila 7 yo 2006 (56,5%, Gordon & MacPhail for The Bonding Dram & FMWS 2014, refill sherry hogshead #306202, 309 btl.)

Nose: very straightforward. Lots of coastal notes, deep soot, burnt heather. Also quite some medicinal notes, iodine, camphor, a little asphalt. Intense peat. But there’s also a loud sweetness that fights back. Baked apple, molasses, peaches on syrup. Powerful ensemble.

Mouth: again sweeter than expected, although the peat is hard to tame. Baked bananas, candy apple, caramel (burnt). Overtaken by soot, camphor and punchy chilli peppers. Some gingery heat. Heather, herbs, slowly getting drier (cayenne pepper tea and liquorice confectionery). Yes, lots of black liquorice candy really.

Finish: very long, herbal, camphory and smoky.

A slightly extreme dram – screaming and kicking around. Luckily the sherry cask brought enough sweetness to maintain the balance. Around € 55.

Score: 87/100