{"product_id":"caol-ila-12-year-old-2013-smws-single-2nd-fill-bourbon-barrel-52-522-islay-onigiri-europe-exclusive-islay-single-malt-scotch-whisky-2025-70cl","title":"Caol Ila 12 Year Old 2013 SMWS Single 2nd Fill Bourbon Barrel 52.522 Islay Onigiri Europe Exclusive Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky (2025) 70cl","description":"\u003ch2\u003eCaol Ila 12 Year Old 2013 SMWS Single 2nd Fill Bourbon Barrel 52.522 Islay Onigiri Europe Exclusive Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky (2025) 70cl\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1 of 194 bottles produced from a single 2nd fill bourbon barrel. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eScotch Malt Whisky Society\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ewas founded in Edinburgh in 1983 by Phillip 'Pip' Hills who, while travelling around Scotland in the 1970s, fell in love with whiskies drawn straight from the cask. After he expanded his syndicate the Society was purchased by Glenmorangie PLC in 2004. In 2015, the Society was sold back to private investors. In June 2021, the private owners floated the holding company The Artisanal Spirits Company plc on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt has a unique code system where the first number refers to the distillery and the second refers to the cask from which the bottle comes. SMWS also offers the largest range of distilleries of any independent bottler. These curiously named drams really do have something for every whisky lover!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWarm oak and honey mingle with smoked pears and sea air, sailing alongside grapefruit zest and honey-glazed lobster. The palate reveals toffee apples and lemon-dressed prawns, finishing with the comforting sweetness of vanilla sponge cake, capturing the essence of a maritime journey.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTASTING NOTES\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA nasal onigiri with salted butter at its core, a sesame dip on the side and roast chicken skewers got us started. The palate was much like the nose; assertive and full flavoured, it took our breath away and then made our mouths water with its savoury, sweet and salty cocktail of seaweed, candied thyme and orange jelly. Water gave the nose lemon and rhubarb in brine, rose petals and charcoal dipped in linseed oil. The finish was effervescent and mineralic; seaweed and salt remained centre stage, but were followed by alpine butter, focaccia, rosemary and charred kelp, peanuts and white chocolate, before a dry finish. After 11 years in an ex-bourbon hogshead, we transferred this to a second fill bourbon barrel for the remainder of its maturation.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAbout Caol Ila\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA perceptive whisky critic once called Caol Ila 'Mr Consistent'. It is a fair assessment. A powerhouse it might be in terms of volume, but Caol Ila always seems to manage to hit the perfect balance between maturity and distillery character, no matter whether it is in official or independent bottlings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCaol Ila's distillery character manages to combine a fresh pear note, grassiness, a hint of juniper and distinct notes of the seashore – lobster shells, crab creels and gentle smoke. Although it receives the same spec of malt as sister distillery Lagavulin, Caol Ila’s distillation regime – longer fermentation, higher cut point, taller stills – helps to reduce the heavy phenols. Maturation for the single malt is in refill casks. The unpeated variant is equally delicate, with a fresh, estery and almost floral lift.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIts importance for blends meant that, until 2002, when a 12-year-old was released, malt lovers had to seek out independent bottlings. Now there is a range including no-age-statement Moch, 18-year-old and 25-year-old, a finished Distiller’s Edition and annual special releases.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt was in 1846 that Hector Henderson decided to build a small distillery in a tight bay next to Port Askaig, on Islay’s east coast. He named his venture Caol Ila, Gaelic for the Sound of Islay, the stretch of water which it overlooked.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1857 Henderson was bought out by blender Bulloch Lade, which improved the site by building a substantial pier. It was absorbed into DCL (now\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/scotchwhisky.com\/whiskypedia\/2624\/diageo\/\"\u003eDiageo\u003c\/a\u003e) in 1927 and ran continuously until 1972, when the old distillery was demolished and a new, significantly larger one was built with six stills rather than two. This transformed Caol Ila into Islay’s largest producer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThese were still the days before the single malt market had really taken off, and its make was destined for a huge array of blends across the whole whisky industry – most notably within its parent company, it filled requirements for Johnnie Walker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen the downturn came in the 1980s, Caol Ila began running unpeated ‘Highland style’ for blends. Not only did it have capacity, but doing so allowed the distillery to stay open. Unpeated is still made every year, with volumes dependent on the forecasts of Diageo’s blending team.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2011, another major revamp took place with a new mash tun and more washbacks being installed, which resulted in capacity increasing to 6.5m litres per annum. During the silent period when contraction was taking place, Bunnahabhain made the peated requirements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2018, Diageo revealed plans to spend £150m on upgrading tourism facilities, including a new brand home for Johnnie Walker in Edinburgh, and improved visitor centres at Caol Ila, plus Clynelish, Cardhu and Glenkinchie, representing regional styles present in Walker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt Caol Ila, a new visitor centre will be created in the distillery warehouse, including a footbridge entry, new car parking and a bar with views across the Sound of Islay to Jura.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e54.1% ABV\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e70cl\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Caol Ila","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54457203523922,"sku":"CAOL12SMWS53.522","price":115.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1052\/9737\/9666\/files\/CaolIla12YearOld2013SMWSSingle2ndFillBourbonBarrel52.522IslayOnigiriEuropeExclusiveIslaySingleMaltScotchWhisky_2025_70cl.jpg?v=1788090745","url":"https:\/\/whiskysituation.co.uk\/products\/caol-ila-12-year-old-2013-smws-single-2nd-fill-bourbon-barrel-52-522-islay-onigiri-europe-exclusive-islay-single-malt-scotch-whisky-2025-70cl","provider":"Whisky Situation","version":"1.0","type":"link"}