Caol Ila comparison with sherry influences
While cleaning out my sample library just before the start of the summer, I came across a sample of Caol Ila bottled by the WhiskyNerds. Coincidentally, I also acquired a newer Caol Ila, bottled by Fragrant Drops. A few months later, one of my whisky sharing friends offered an older Caol Ila from the 1990s, but also bottled around 10 years of age. So, as all of these expressions are more or less of the same age, with relatively comparable alcohol strength, I thought it would be fun to taste them together. I actually partly wrote this blog during Caol Ila Day 2026. We love what this distillery produces, even though owner Diageo seems to prefer to neglect the single malt. This opens doors for the independent bottlers, who have been flooding the market with their own Caol Ila expressions since the beginning of mankind. Let’s get our teeth into today’s samples then!
Caol Ila vintage 1993, bottled at 60 % abv by Cadenhead’s
First things first: This bourbon hogshead was bottled in March 2003, which feels like yesterday but is in fact ages ago! Just 312 bottles were produced in the Authentic Collection.
Upon Sipping: Despite the rocket fuel strength, this Caol Ila speaks volumes from a mile away. Beautiful white wine colour and whiffs of peat bog rising from the glass. Some tar, some wet rope, the sea in a glass, and warm tarmac under your behind while sitting on the pier in front of the distillery. Obviously some lemons, which always seems the result of plain bourbon oak and strong peaty malt. In short: an absolute classic example of Caol Ila! The palate is creamy and sweet at first, before an oaky signature moves in, leaving the field wide open for an incredible peat explosion. Such a raw example of Islay force. After adding some water, the quality remains high, so this is an excellent swimmer. Almost as if this cask was matured on the bottom of the Sound of Islay! With some breathing we pick up a little gorge in full bloom, perhaps some sunflower oil, and a hint of banana. This is extremely narrow in the peat spectrum, absolutely stunning.
Word to the Wise: An absolute cracker of a peat monster, this Caol Ila. It delivers in spades!
Score: 89 points.
Caol Ila vintage 2013, 11 years old, bottled at 55,6 % abv by Keeble Cask Company
First things first: Better known as Fragrant Drops, this is a 2013 Caol Ila distilled on 24 July and bottled on 24 June 2025, so just one month short of being a 12 years old. The Islay malt received a finish on a Fresh Fino Sherry hogshead. Cask # 900892 produced 262 bottles.
Upon Sipping: The whiffs of farmland coming from this glass is just astonishing, but when you stick your nose in deeper you will certainly feel the mark the sherry made on this Caol Ila. A typical sour, acidic mix of tar and fruitiness. Hints of meat on the grill, rightly seasoned. Makes a very balanced impression. On the palate, the fino sherry is much more pronounced, it really dominates you into thinking this is just any good whisky that displays the beauty of a sherry cask. But then you swallow, and all the peat and brine and smoky grain hits you hard. Cask and spirit work together very well. With water, the nose reveals a maritime freshness, like standing on the shore and meeting the wind coming in from the Sound of Islay head first. Hints of chocolate too. The adding of a little drop brings out the oily mouthfeel Caol Ila is known for, and the peat bites even more ferocious. What a powerful Caol Ila, my oh my!
Word to the Wise: A total beast of an Islay whisky. The peat on this Caol Ila is strong as a young boxer. The finish serves the spirit very well, without overpowering it, especially if you are willing to add a splash of water.
Score: 88 points.
Caol Ila vintage 2011, 10 years old, bottled at 57,5 % abv by WhiskyNerds
First things first: Distilled on 10 May 2011 and bottled on 22 January 2022. Cask # 5846 was a sherry hogshead that produced 326 bottles
Upon Sipping: Crazy how time flies, I tasted this Caol Ila in May 2022, and remember I was struck by the high alcohol. When my bottle went empty, I put 6 cl of it away. Let’s see if the 4 years since then settled the fierce character a little. For sure, the nose is very interesting on this one, as it opens on light hints of mentholated peat. Underneath that, the more fruity elegance of the sherry cask, and then comes what is left of Caol Ila character. Tobacco leaves, aniseed, herbs and even some eucalyptus. Incomparable to the Fragrant Drops above! The taste is superbly soft and dipped in raisins and high strength rum. No trace of menthol now, so that is good. The finish lacks a little punch, maybe because the high abv cloaks it too much. We will try with some water. A good splash actually brings out some gunpowder, but in a nice, peated way. The sweetness on the palate is enhanced, arriving on this beautiful oily gulf of joy. The peat I would have preferred more talkative, like on the Fragrant Drops, but this Caol Ila is complex because it integrated into something more woven into the complete picture. To use a metaphor, consider the last two Caol Ila I tasted today as a penalty kick in football. The Fragrant Drops is shot hard, high and in the corner, the WhiskyNerds is a panenka.
Word to the Wise: This bottling by the WhiskyNerds is a whisky you open, put in the back of your cabinet, and forget about for a few years. It will perform wonders when it comes out.
Score: 88 points.