To commemorate the 10th anniversary of our Port Askaig series of single malts, we have bottled this 10-year-old limited edition. First-fill bourbon hogsheads (25%), refill hogsheads (60%) and sherry butts (15%) were selected from a distillery close to the village of Port Askaig in order to achieve a careful balance of peat, fruit and oak. As this whisky particularly shines with a higher ABV, we decided to bottle it at a generous 55.85% – which also happens to be the geographical latitude of the port itself. Port Askaig is a range of Islay single malt whiskies that embodies the unique spirit of Islay and its people. Nestled into the north coast of the island, Port Askaig has been the gateway to Islay for hundreds of years. It seemed right to name our whisky after this magical place. While there is no distillery at Port Askaig, it gives us the opportunity to specially select casks from the distilleries around Islay and create a variety of expressions.
Tasting Notes: Nose: Smoke is immediately apparent; burnt matchsticks and the embers from a coal fire. Dry sawdust on a carpenter’s floor. Then the sweetness: streaky bacon stacked high on pancakes drizzled with heather honey, alongside banana bread, ginger ale and under-ripe apricots.
Palate: A bold maritime peat rolls around the palate, coming and going like waves on the shore. Salt-crusted rye bread, extra virgin olive oil, roasted butternut squash, Chinese five-spice, and a salad of apples and fresh samphire. Smouldering juniper branches and white pepper follow, with a glass of crisp aperitif wine.
Finish: Lingering wet ashes, bags of dried orchard fruit, thyme and grilled lemons. Finally, some of the five-spice comes back – star anise and fennel.
