Caol Ila 1974 Map Label Connoisseurs Choice Gordon & Macphail

Caol Ila 21 Year Old 1990 Old Malt Cask

It really pays to clean out your sample cabinet from time to time. Look what I found… an old Caol Ila from the Old Malt Cask series from the era when the Laing brothers still ran the company together. This 21 years old Ileach from 1990 has been in the bottle for over 8 years already. Very aromatic nose on apfelstrüdel, pineapple on the barbecue,...

Score 88/100

Caol Ila Smoky Scot

Aceo Ltd is the company that took over Murray McDavid from Mark Reynier at the moment the Bruichladdich Distillery was sold off. They now release this 5 Year Old malt that listens to the name Smoky Scot and is very affordable: not even 40 EUR. They are happy to disclose that it’s a Caol Ila that matured on bourbon casks for five years. The nose...

Score 85/100

Caol Ila 10 Year Old 2005 Gordon & Macphail Reserve for Belgium

This Caol Ila hit the Belgian market last year. The single cask was bottled for my little country, 233 bottles strong. At first whiff, the nose does not really remind me of Caol Ila. The maritime elements stay away and the bourbon cask does all the talking. Think vanilla, pears, marzipan and coconut. Something that reminds me of stale beer (not an...

Score 84/100

Caol Ila 7 Year Old 2011 Asta Morris

When Bert Bruyneel launches a Caol Ila, you had better get your skates on. Mostly the bottles are sold out before I even get the change to order one. This is one of those releases – albeit 580 bottles strong – that I missed. Thanks to a buddy in Holland (yes, I do have friends there, believe it or not) I was able to get my hands of a sample. I’ll...

Score 88/100