Port Ellen 30 years 1979 - 2009 9th Release

Port Ellen was founded in 1825 as a malt house and then developed into a distillery from 1833 to 1892 under the leadership of John Ramsay. The warehouses he built are still listed. The distillery was taken over by the Distillers Company Limited in 1925, closed in 1930 and rebuilt in 1966/1967. Production continued through the 1970s and closed in 1983, although single malt whisky is still available. When Port Ellen closed in 1983, Diageo demolished some of the buildings, reused others and destroyed the stills.

Origin and bottling

Distilled in 1979 and finally bottled in the year 2010 after a 30-year maturation. This is the 9th edition from the Annual Release series. Only 5916 bottles were eventually released, making it very exclusive.

Cask type

For this 9th Release, it is not clear what type of cask it was matured in, but it is expected to be a combination of Refill Sherry Casks and Refill American Bourbon Casks. This release is bottled at natural cask strength of 57.5%

Tasting note

Colour

Golden yellow

Nose

Initially, the aroma is still a bit closed. Take your time to get acquainted with this Single Malt from the closed distillery. After a few minutes, this glass reveals itself completely. Rich peat, oily smoked fish, seaweed, dettol, ship's cable and railway sleepers that have just been tarred. Also fruit notes like grapefruit, citrus and orange. Speculoos and a hint of liquorice make sniffing this glass a treat.

Taste

A full seaplatter passes for flavours. Peat and seaweed, but also a crisp fireside. Spicy, full-bodied and deliciously firm. A powerhouse with character. Nougat, dark chocolate and a briny character.

Finish

The wood and peat aromas linger wonderfully on the palate.

Overall impression

Masterful. This is a pleasure for the taste buds.

This Port Ellen 9th Release has an average score of 91.39/100 points on WhiskyBase

Limited Edition Bottle No. 3330

Read Serge Valentin's tasting note on his website www.WhiskyFun.com here.

He rated this Single Malt Whisky with 95/100 points.