Caol Ila 1990 Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection Cask n°99-103 1 - bottled 2005 Vintage Rum Finish

Lot presentation

Caol Ila 1990 Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection Cask n°99-103 1 - bottled 2005 Vintage Rum Finish

The wine

A small batch Caol Ila (#99/103 1) distilled in 1990 and bottled in 2005 by Gordon & MacPhail for the Private Collection, finished in a rum cask. The first version of the Private Collection focused on finishes. Today it features some of Gordon & MacPhail’’s oldest and most prestigious bottlings. A limited edition of 865 bottles.

About the Producer Caol Ila

Scotland, Isle of Islay. Distillery operational. Owner: Diageo

Fully modernized between 1972 and 1974, Caol Ila escaped the wave of closures sweeping through the Scotch whisky industry in the early 1980s. A key component in numerous blends, including Johnnie Walker, Bulloch Lade and Black Bottle, Caol Ila remained for a long time overshadowed by its illustrious sister Lagavulin. Up until the late 1980s, its malt was available in 12 and 15 year old versions bottled by Bulloch Lade & Co. In the early 1990s, United Distilleries launched two ranges showcasing all of its distilleries, The Rare Malts Selection and Flora & Fauna. Four versions of Caol Ila would be bottled first (vintage and cask strength limited editions), followed by a 43% 14 year old. Note that a 1983 cask strength in the very short-lived Fauna & Flora Cask Strength range and, more importantly, a classic 15 year old sherry cask - The Manager's Dram - were also released. In order to relieve Lagavulin of the pressure on its stocks in the early 2000s, Caol Ila was officially released on the market in 2002 in the Hidden Malt range, alongside three versions of its malt, a no-age-statement cask strength (55%), a 12 year old, and an 18 year old, followed by a 1978 25 year old in 2004.