Caol Ila 19 year old 1979/1999

The nose is reminiscent of barbecue (a Caol Ila trademark, as far as I'm concerned), but not as much as the Signatory '89/'99.  Nose also shows heavy-scented cooking herbs, eucalyptus leaf, balsa wood, and the vanilla-scented bark of the Jeffrey Pine (thanks to reader Jim Rogers for identifying this tree for me.)  The palate, taken neat, shows hickory, salty smoke, and pine, turning to tar, sharp Islay peat, and maybe fertilizer.  Water opens the nose, lightening it, and the malt now smells unmistakably like a California campground, with hints of rum extract; the nose could easily pass for that of a non-Islay islander.  The palate becomes gauzier.  I could pick this out of a lineup as a Caol Ila.