Product description
The Rock Island brand was launched in the late 2018 as part of Douglas Laing’s Remarkable Regional Malts.
The whisky replaces Rock Oyster, the original blended malt representing the Islands. Rock Island is a marriage of single malts distilled on the islands of Islay, Arran, Jura and Orkney and captures smoky and salty character of these local whiskies. The remaining “remarkable regional malts” are Timorous Beastie (Highlands), Scallywag (Speyside), Big Peat (Islay), The Epicurean (Lowlands) and The Gauldrons (Campbeltown). Rock Island Small Batch, an entry-level expression of the brand, is bottled of natural color and without chill-filtration.
Nose: very maritime, iodine, sea breeze, rocks washed with ocean waves, lemon grass, honey, dash of pepper and distant whiff of peat smoke.
Palate: fresh and briny, sea spray, seaweed salad, honey, licorice, lemon peel, pepper, salted nuts and little smoke in the background.
Finish: medium long, briny and nutty, with delicate sweetness, dash of lemon grass and lingering peat smoke.