Compass Box Extinct Blends Quartet Celestial (75cl, 50%)

Celestial is the fourth and final release in Compass Box's Extinct Blends Quartet, led by whiskymaker James Saxon. It reimagines an undisclosed blended Scotch of the 1950s and 1960s from one of the original Whisky Barons. It was bottled in November 2023 at 50% ABV, in a run of 5,532 bottles, with natural colour and no chill-filtering. Ardbeg and Caol Ila malts form its core, and reported components also include Old Pulteney and Glen Elgin malts with Port Dundas and Cameronbridge grain, matured in recharred, first-fill, sherry and French oak. The character is heavyweight peat, opening as a beach bonfire and building to a coastal smokehouse, with ginger, vanilla and grilled apples. The palate is dry and oak-forward, with meaty smoke leading into cooked tropical fruit.