Caol Ila distillery

Caol Ila

Region:Islay
Location	Port Askaig
Owner	Diageo
Founded	1846
Status	Operational
Water source	Loch nam Ban
No.of stills	3 wash (19,000 L) 3 spirit (12,000 L)
Capacity	6,500,000 L
Mothballed	1930–1937, 1942–1945
Caol Ila
Age(s)	12-year-old cask strength 18-year-old 25-year-old
Cask type(s)	American oak
ABV	43%

Caol Ila distillery(/kʌlˈiːlə/;Scottish Gaelic:Taigh-staile Chaol Ìle[t̪ʰəˈs̪t̪aləxɯːlˈiːlə],"Sound of IslayDistillery ") is aScotch whiskydistillerynearPort Askaigon the isle ofIslay,Scotland,owned byDiageo.

History

Caol Ila is derived from GaelicCaol Ìlefor "Sound of Islay"(lit." Islay Strait ") in reference to the distillery's location overlooking the strait between Islay and Jura. It was founded in 1846 byHector Henderson.The distillery did not fare well, and changed hands in 1854 when Norman Buchanan, owner of theIsle of JuraDistillery, took over. In 1863 the business was acquired by Bulloch Lade & Co, ofGlasgow,traders in whisky stocks. According to the 1871 census, Duncan Johnston was the Distillery Manager at the time. Duncan was the nephew of John Johnston of Lagavulin and cousin to theLaphroaig Johnstonsand so the family were involved with yet another distillery on the island. By the 1880s over 147,000 imperial gallons (670,000 L) of whisky were produced there each year.

In 1920 Bulloch Lade went into voluntary liquidation, and a consortium of businessmen formed the Caol Ila Distillery Company Ltd. In 1927 theDistillers Companyacquired a controlling interest in Caol Ila, and in 1930 Scottish Malt Distillers Ltd obtained ownership of all the shares. The distillery closed duringWorld War II,from 1942 to 1945, because of wartime restrictions on the supply ofbarleyto distillers. From then, production continued until 1972, when the entire structure of the distillery was demolished. A larger distillery was then built, designed by George Leslie Darge in the same architectural style as many of his others with his trademark glazed curtain walls to the still houses, and production resumed in 1974. The company eventually became part ofDiageo.

The whisky

Caol Ila is one of the lighter Islay whiskies, pale in colour, with peaty, floral and peppery notes. In addition to being sold as asingle malt,it is used heavily (around 95% of their production) in blends such asJohnnie Walker'sBlack Label.Since 1999, the distillery has also produced a non-peated "highland spirit".

Awards

Different expressions of Caol Ila have generally rated highly atspirit ratingscompetitions. The 12-year, for example, received two double gold, three gold, and one silver medal from theSan Francisco World Spirits Competitionbetween 2005 and 2010. It also received an above-average score of 90-95 from Wine Enthusiast in 2005.The 18- and 25-year expressions, though not as frequently rated by outside agencies, have also tended to score well.

See also

• Islay whisky
• Scotch whisky
• Whisky
• List of whisky brands
• List of distilleries in Scotland

External links

• Caol Ila official website
• Caol Ila visitor information
• Islay Whisky Society