Scotch Whisky Review #194: Signatory Vintage Caol Ila 9 Year Refill Sherry (2010)

Distillery: Caol Ila

Bottler: Signatory

Region: Islay

ABV: 60.1% Cask Strength

Cask Type: Refill Sherry Butt

Cask Number: 316659

Age: 9 Year

Color: 1.6, Mahogany/Henna Notes. Natural Color and Non-Chill Filtered.

Nose: There’s a lot of peat here, it’s smokey but not in the normal “you might as well be burning a pile of leaves under your nose” kind but closer to barbecue chips. It’s very wet, grassy, and slightly sweet. There’s so much grass here, I almost feel like I’ve stuck my head into a pile of sod… A very earthy, funky note accompanies the peat. The smell reminds me of an Oriental medicine shop.

Palate: It’s incredibly hot, undrinkable without being watered down. With some water though, it turns into a very rich dram. There’s a lot of sweet, lightly smoked peat joined by lemons and a bit of raisin. Candied bacon and honey smoked ham work their way in slowly which results in a very lovely savory and sweet experience.

Finish: Long, but not long enough! It’s rather meaty, the candied bacon and honey smoked ham from the palate continue. There’s a bit of spice and a bit of tobacco that wraps this one up.

Conclusion: If you’ve ever wanted to experience what a very meaty whisky is like, I’d probably recommend this one. The nose teases it slightly with barbecue chips. The palate and finish absolutely are full of wonderful bacon and ham notes. I actually got hungry drinking this, wanting a few slices of bacon to go along with it. All of the other notes in this simply support and enhance these meaty notes. Really good dram by the folks over at Signatory!

Final Score: 87.

Scotch Whisky Review #194, Islay Review #20, Whisky Network Review #272

Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.