Caol Ila - Natural Cask Strength

[r900p]

I've been looking at Caol Ila's for a while now, and i think i may get the 8 unpeated at the weekend.

But i came across a bottle in my searches, it has no age statement, but just has 'Natural Cask Strength' written on the label. Does anyone know how old this is?

Also how does Caol Ila compare with the other Ila's bearing in mind i drink a lot of Bruichladdich.

Thanks, Rob

[Laphroaig]

Is it the distillery bottle (25 years old CS)? If so, I've tasted two releases and prefer the second but both were DAMN delicious - do keep in mind I like Coal Ila a lot anyway, though.

If it is the distillery bottle... in small print on the label mine says distilled in 1979 bottled in 2005 (I think but would have to verify the actual dates from home). Maybe look closer at the smaller printing and you might find some of the data you're in search of (assuming we are talking about the same item).

[Wave]

If the bottle your refering to is the Caol Ila Cask Strength OB that is out now the concencous is that it's about an 11yo. I tasted it the last time I was in Scotland and as much as I love the CI 12yo I loved the CS more!


Cheers!

[Willie JJ]

If the bottle your refering to is the Caol Ila Cask Strength OB that is out now the concencous is that it's about an 11yo. I tasted it the last time I was in Scotland and as much as I love the CI 12yo I loved the CS more!
Cheers!

Hear hear Wave.

The NAS CS is fantastic, but very different from the Laddie Rob. More Laphroaigy in style, but not if you know what I mean

[Wave]

Hmm, not really Laphroaigy, not quite as medicial. The best way to discribe it as ...
Sweet smoky peat dipped in olive oii!


Cheers!

[Willie JJ]

Yeah that's a lot better description than I gave. Thanks Wave.

[r900p]

Well i can't stand Laph, not educated enough yet! But i'll be giving one Caol Ila a go, i'll have to go and ponder in the shop. Sorry guys what does NAS stand for, is it that obvious i'm missing it. I'll post back with what i get, i saw packs of three also, maybe i'll look at getting one of those.

Rob

[Reggaeblues]

No Age Statement, I believe...

[Reggaeblues]

Sorry to pour water in your whisky 900, but...

if you "can't stand" Laphroaig I'd be very surprised if you liked Caol Ila. If as you say your palate is "not educated enough yet" then CI is probably quite similar. If on the other hand it's something other than the medicinal in yer face-ness of Laphroaig you don't like, and you enjoy, say, Ardbeg and Lagavulin, then perhaps the subtle differences of CI will appeal to you, and you're more educated than you think!

...but to those uninitiated in the world of peatsmoke, I'd say a cask strength would be a daunting place to start!

[BruceCrichton]

Don't know how old it is but I had it in a whisky and meat talk and found that it went nicely with smoked sausage and " was surprisingly light with a salty tang and some slight smoke".

It was 59.2%abv.

[BruceCrichton]

Sorry to pour water in your whisky 900, but...

if you "can't stand" Laphroaig I'd be very surprised if you liked Caol Ila. If as you say your palate is "not educated enough yet" then CI is probably quite similar. If on the other hand it's something other than the medicinal in yer face-ness of Laphroaig you don't like, and you enjoy, say, Ardbeg and Lagavulin, then perhaps the subtle differences of CI will appeal to you, and you're more educated than you think!

...but to those uninitiated in the world of peatsmoke, I'd say a cask strength would be a daunting place to start!

Caol Ila is usually much lighter and there are some sweet ones out there. The Distillers edition, finished in moscatel wood, is wonderfully complex. CI is not a one big punch whisky like Laphroaig.

[Laphroaig]

Sorry to pour water in your whisky 900, but...

if you "can't stand" Laphroaig I'd be very surprised if you liked Caol Ila. If as you say your palate is "not educated enough yet" then CI is probably quite similar. If on the other hand it's something other than the medicinal in yer face-ness of Laphroaig you don't like, and you enjoy, say, Ardbeg and Lagavulin, then perhaps the subtle differences of CI will appeal to you, and you're more educated than you think!

...but to those uninitiated in the world of peatsmoke, I'd say a cask strength would be a daunting place to start!

Caol Ila is usually much lighter and there are some sweet ones out there. The Distillers edition, finished in moscatel wood, is wonderfully complex. CI is not a one big punch whisky like Laphroaig.

Spot on, BC.

If forced to two categories, I'm curious (generalizing), would those of you familiar with more recent distillery bottles place Caol Ila closer in relationship to a very smoke-peated Bruichladdich or a Laphroaig Lite? On a smoking-gun level, Laphroaig Lite fits, but to me personally, Caol Ila's recent OBs offer some fruit not completely unlike that found in tha' Laddies.

It's merely 1 opinion, but without better descriptions as to specifically what isn't likable with Laphroaig, I would not automatically assume a malt enthusiast would also dislike Caol Ila - especially if considering the profiles of current OB releases. Now, private / indie bottles of Caol Ila can be quite a different number.

[conqueso]

What is the difference between this:



Caol Ila Cask Strength, 55% ABV

And this



Caol Ila Natural Cask Strength, 59.3% ABV

[conqueso]

The 59.3% edition is more recent. The 55% were the first batches, apparently they have changed it a bit.

Have you tasted both? Which is better? Is it as big of a difference as the old green stripe Laphroaig CS' and the newer red stripe?

[Deactivated Member]

I love CI, but prefer CS versions and most definitely do not go for the unpeated one!

[Lawrence]

I think one is chillfiltered and one isn't.

[Deactivated Member]

As a special treat tonight I have a small sample of CI 25y NCS.