We’re more than half way and although I am still not in the top 15 of the competition, I think it is a bit of consolidation that the number one on the list only has 416 points of a possible 1000. Apparently I am not the only one having trouble guessing the right distillery.

Nose:
At first this one was pretty nasty with a massive hit of alcohol and an incredibly sharp burn in my nose. White spirit (the version you keep in the shed) and such. After a couple of minutes that dissipates and you get some green fruit (apples, pears) and a hint of vanilla and wood.

Taste:
Dry and sharp in a way that burn my lips. That also indicates its a above 60%, most of the times. After the alcohol burns , your mouth heals and you try again you get some vanilla and something gently spicy. I also thought to taste some nougat.

Finish:
The finish doesn’t do much for me. No surprises on the palate and quite weak. Probably because of the massive amount of alcohol in this dram. I do get some vanilla and pear, but then I’m trying real hard!

I thought this just might be the new Caol Ila Unpeated. High in alcohol and the right flavour profile, although most of the ones I tried were better than this one. So I went for the newest one.

Old Pulteney 15,  1995-2010, 61.3%, OB, cask #2989

The fact that I only got 10 points is a bummer, but in this case I think the whiskies are comparable and I don’t think I’m too big an idiot in guessing the Caol Ila over this one. The flavour profiles match quite well in my opinion.