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SMWS 53.490: Caol Ila

“Heather honey cashew nuts roasted with sea salt” · Past release, no longer on sale
Heather honey cashew nuts roasted with sea salt - SMWS 53.490Sold outFeb 2025
53.490

Heather honey cashew nuts roasted with sea salt

SMWS regionIslay
Age12 years
ABV57.7%
Cask2nd fill ex-bourbon hogshead
SpiritMalt Whisky
Distillery from SMWS code 53
DistilleryCaol Ila
RegionIslay

In short · Caol Ila (Islay), 12 years.

“We imagined joining a barbecue on the beach with an array of shellfish just about ready for us to enjoy.…”Extract · full tasting notes at SMWS
£84View on SMWS

SMWS 53.490 is a single cask of Caol Ila, in the Islay region, 12 years old, bottled at 57.7%, released in the Feb 2025 Outturn. Every Society bottle numbered 53.x is from Caol Ila.

How the price compares
At £84, this 12-year-old cost less than 22 of the 34 Caol Ila bottlings aged 10–14 released 2023–2026 that we hold. They ranged from £65.50 to £104, with a median of £92.
Shaded: their range · line: this bottleRelease prices, not adjusted for inflation

Specs, price and tasting-note extract from the SMWS. Full notes on smws.com.

About Caol Ila

Hidden in a cove above Port Askaig, gazing across the churning Sound of Islay to the Paps of Jura, Caol Ila (1846) is the island's largest distillery and the quiet engine-room of Johnnie Walker. On its own, though, it is a beauty: oily and cool, olive brine and lemon and a soft grey smoke. Diageo's.

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