This brand new, very smartly packaged and self-restrained bottle of Port Ellen stems from four American oak hogsheads and five European oak butts that were deemed as ‘holding unusual flavour characteristics that stood out from the typical Port Ellen distillery character’. Said to be of a lighter, more delicate style of Port Ellen, let’s check that. Well it cannot be any less delicate than the last 10 anyway… Colour: gold. Nose: yeah well, same conclusion as last time we had a +/-40yo PE, they age just beautifully, gaining much elegance and, in this very case, a rather superb and subtle medicinal and piny side. Actually, fresh almonds are first up, so are very fresh walnuts and perhaps brazils, then camphory ointments, some vivid notes of bergamots (which I would die for), then a little natural rubber and tar - after all this is PE - and the subtlest very old pu-ehr tea around the tenth water. Yep. With water, precisely: indeed, it gets subtle, almost whispering, rather on old embrocations, old linseed oil at a painter’s, with an unexpected touch of preserved peach or apricot, almost as a wink. A little raw wool too, and something that I’ve found in quite a few old PEs if I remember well, Woolite! And citron zests. Mouth (neat): lighter? Were they meaning this is like if you would lick your old Zippo? It’s certainly not a light whisky, it’s rather some kind of peppered grapefruit juice blended with liquid smoke in which you would have let cedar wood, bitter almonds and bits of kippers infuse for a good two weeks. There’s clearly some oak but it would come with some mint and lime peel, which just always works. With water: some pine resin and a little black tobacco from the oak, otherwise some chocolate, oranges, pepper, black tea, and more and more cinnamon. Indeed that’s the oak, but everything remained under control, you would never say this is oaky whisky. Finish: medium to long, rather on smoked tea, more cinnamon, marzipan, cocoa and notes of putty. Comments: superb old Port Ellen that rather managed to keep the oak at bay, even if I wouldn’t try to bring these casks to the ripe old age of 45. Better rebuilld the place and restart distilling ;-).