Don't Caol Ila chickens before they hatch...

I missed this year's Whisky Live as I had to bring kids overseas. This was what PY bought on my behalf, after strong recommendation from the LMdW staff. He bought for himself an Ardmore 9 years from the same series, but I think the informal tasting I had of it isn't good enough for note publishing. Maybe next time!

This continues my quest for peat in the lead up to Christmas in sunny Singapore, where there are no fireplaces to sit around sipping Lagavulin, so I'll have to make do.

Caol Ila 6 years, Artists' Collective by LMdW (abv 43%)

Colour - Very pale

Nose - Cucumber, zucchini, honey dew, pears. That's all the green stuff coming out straight at me. Strong malty backing. Brioche moistened by wet scrambled eggs. This is a good, balanced breakfast, completed with some jasmine tea notes. Then breakfast ends, with smoke from burning incense. An odd lingering scent of shaven oak. This one stands out if you look for it. Maybe the cask is a little active?

Palate - Oysters, salt. Lemon. Oily without too much viscosity. A touch of smoked ham. Lots of spices - pepper, lots of ginger. Seaweed. A nutty middle, almost like praline. Hazelnut syrup. The sap from a cut ladies' finger/okra. This is a little odd; didn't pick it up the first time round at PY's place. Smokey, without being overbearing.

Finish - Charred oak and lemon juice. Pepper and cloves. The skin of a roasted almond. This roasted almond stays with you for a really long time.

Overall - This is very green, and very good. Clean but complex, apart from the slightly off-putting okra sap. Odd. The bottle alone is worth some money, if you intend to collect this as part of a set. Alas, LMdW Singapore has already run out of most of the bottles in this collective.

That bottle arts looks like some flower illuminati, but I guess it could also mean that all colours converge on one flower (what?)