BRUICHLADDICH 1991 21YO - CADENHEAD AUTHENTIC COLLECTION

Phew, time flies and personal stuff has lately interfered with my writing a bit more than I'd like, making my reviews a bit sporadic lately. Anyway, Let's skip straight on to the next Cadenhead bottling.

When I first started drinking whisky around Y2K, I remember trying Laphroaig 10 and Lagavulin 16 and thinking that Islay whisky wasn't for me... However, I had not yet made the acquaintance with Bruichladdich and to be honest I'm not quite sure when I did except it was around 2003/2004, which means it was some 3-4 years into my whisky journey.

Back then I fell in love with the 10yo and 15yo 1st edition even though both Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg had also already made their way onto my drink list by that time. It would then be another 3 years before I visited Islay and Bruichladdich for the first time (2007) and since then I've been back to Islay 4 more times 08, 09, 11 and May 2015.

In May I brought a bottle of 1966 40yo Bruichladdich bottled by Duncan Taylor with me to Islay to drink while we were there - seems only fitting a bottle like this goes 'home' to end its days, yes? :-) you can read my review of that bottling by clicking here.

Anyway, back to the 1991 from Cadenhead. This is a bottling from the Authentic Collection-series, which means its a single cask-bottling.

Distilling Port Charlotte at Bruichladdich, October 7th 2008 © The Malt Desk

Bruichladdich 1991 21yo (xx.xx.1991/xx.10.2013) 52,1%, ex-bourbon hogshead, 176 bottles, Cadenhead Authentic Collection

Colour is pale straw

Nose:
This noses like classic bourbon matured B'Laddich. It also feels like that the cask hasn't been all that active. Its all very fresh and malty long with vanilla, apple tart leaning towards citrus (grape fruit?) notes. It also reveals a slight floral note, some mineral and cooking oil notes + the tiniest hints of peat.

Taste:

I think my suspicions about a fairly inactive cask sticks. The arrival is very mellow and pleasing with soft white fruit (apple, melon), truckloads of malt, some licorice and barley sugar. The finish is almost entirely malt driven with a slight salty burst and a herbal edge at times.

This is maybe not the most complex of malts, but just drinks so incredibly well and that counts for something in my book too. I'd say it one of those malts you'd pour a large dram of, when you need to relax after a busy week.

86/100!

BRUICHLADDICH 1966 40YO - DUNCAN TAYLOR

Those of you that follow The Malt Desk on Facebook might have noticed that during my 2 week trip to Scotland in the first half of May, I brought a bottle of old Bruichladdich from my personal stash with me back to Islay to end its days there...

Pretty fitting, don't you think? a bottle like that going full circle... :-)

It was enjoyed on the rock in front of the distillery and the rest of it at our guesthouse in Bowmore.

So how was this old Laddie?

A bottle gone full circle, Islay -> Denmark -> Islay, May 9th 20 15 © The Malt Desk

Bruichladdich 1966 40yo (xx.01.1966/xx.05.2006) 41,6%, Cask#200, 170 bottles total, Duncan Taylor

Colour is dark amber

Nose:
This just reeks of old whisky, both in style and from the maturation. The nose is just lovely...

A herb garden, bit of mustiness, wet licorice root, some varnish, old painters storage room, fresh crushed green leaves and some sweet malt all the way in the back

Quite intriguing!

Taste:
Obviously some oak present, but not overly so... bit drying, but then a rush of dried tropical fruits with green banana being very dominant. Also some ginger in here along with cumin and coriander.

The whole thing finished again on a bit of a dry spell and malt.

Verdict on the old Laddie?

I like it, alot... but I'm not a 100% fan because of its slight imbalance with its herbal and drying side...

88/100!

BRUICHLADDICH 1986 18YO - CADENHEAD AUTHENTIC COLLECTION

Right now, we're having a hot spell over most of Europe with temperatures between 24-30 degree celcius - its certainly hot here in Denmark and in my favourite other country, Scotland...

For some it means less whisky drinking as their olfactory system gets inhibited by the heat...
Does yours too? My own? Hmm, not really this year, which is strange, I must admit... especially in a time where most people would rather sit down with a nice refreshing Gin & Tonic instead, right?

So what's different this year since I don't think it too hot for whisky? Well, in April I moved to a new place which kinda refreshed me a bit and even though its hot outside I now live in a place where I can produce a cool draft all day as its high up and by the water front too - lovely! :-)

The bottling I'll be review today is from Bruichladdich and from their old stock, back in 1986.
It's a whisky from which I've already 1 bottle a couple of 3-4 years ago and remember it as some of the better Bruichladdich I've had... for comparison I also also reviewed a very good 1992 Bruichladdich also from Cadenhead back in January this year... have a look at that one too...

But back to the Gin & Tonic, well sort of...

The picture below is the 'Ugly Betty'-still at Bruichladdich distillery on which they make their 'Botanist' gin from 22 different Island botanicals- The still is an old Lomond still from the now closed Inverleven distillery in Dumbarton.

It's a incredibly smooth gin at 46% abv and mixes very well with a bit of ice and tonic water or you can even leave out the tonic and just pour over a little ice - either way, its a refreshing drink!

But this is not the Gin desk, it's The Malt Desk, so I'll whip up that Bruichladdich review for you...


The 'Ugly Betty'-gin producing still at Bruichladdich, 6th May 2011 © The Malt Desk

Bruichladdich 1986 18yo (xx.xx.1986/xx.05.2005) 55,8%, ex-bourbon hogshead, 270 bottles, Cadenhead Authentic Collection

Colour is full straw

Nose:
Vanilla and peat hand in hand and quite more peat than expected. Slight floral hints and both ginger and nutmeg, peppery spices, musty, wet newspaper and even honey and solventy note.

Taste:
Good sweet malt arrival- very Bruichladdich, followed by spicy oak and clearly some nutmeg and peat in beautiful measures, never subduing the vanillas, soft fruits and oily notes also in there.

Another good cask by Cadenhead, but now long gone, sadly as it was bottled in 2005...

88/100!

PORT CHARLOTTE 2002 127.29 'SEPARATES THE MEN FROM THE BOYS' - THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

Bruichladdich distillery is well know for its various cask finishes or ACE's as they like to call it themselves (A)dditional (C)ask (E)nhancement - usually from some obscure wine cask likely sourced at a good price from Mark Reynier's wine firm...

This is all very fine if the results is good whisky that may previously have been maturing in tired casks... but really sometimes you'd think the they at Bruichladdich think ACE is A-C- Enchantment as far from every wine finish they've done have worked, IMO.

Now, don't despair - there's good wine finishes out there! I'll be the first to admit to that as well... The best ones I've had has been from ex red wine/port and/or calvados casks...

I've chosen to keep sherry casks out of the mention here as they're more widely used and generally provides a more successful maturation result - again of course IMO :-)

Such a result is today's review of another SMWS 127.xx - Port Charlotte...

Port Charlotte 2001 127.29 (14.12.2001/xx.xx.2012) 10yo 'Separates the men from the boys' 63,8%, Refill ex-sherry butt, 73 bottles, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Colour is amber

Nose:
Damp peat, beach bonfire and quite a few medicinal traits, old bandages, iodine and band aids.
A dark heavy winey sweetness with anise and a bit of a dirty cask feel with plenty of spices

Taste:
The sherry is initially dulls the peat for a second or 2, then the peat hits in full force with salt, brine, seaweed, also a feeling like sucking on a stick from a wet bonfire before classic sherry notes of dried fruits and spices arrive along with hint of bitter (smoky) chocolate

A very forceful PC, this one...  and it truly 'Separates the men from the boys'!

87/100!

PORT CHARLOTTE 2002 127.21 'NOT FOR WUSSES' - THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

We leave the Islay south shore for the next 2 reviews and head across the waters of Lochindaal to Bruichladdich Distillery.

Now, Bruichladdich was - as previously mentioned on this blog, sold to Remy Cointreau in the summer of 2012 with a promise from the Remy conglomerate not to change much of daily life at Bruichladdich Distillery - and hopefully they won't... It's the single largest workplace on Islay, mainly due to its bottling hall and along with the rest of the jobs there, it could make a significant impact on the local island economy if e.g. jobs were cut or moved off the island. Now, I've not read or heard anything pointing in that direction, so fingers crossed it does not happen...

Time to head onto the review this time which is a Port Charlotte from the SMWS, distillery code 127- making it a relative new distillery to be bottled by the SMWS - the first being back in 2010 (please correct me if I'm wrong).

Now, the original Lochindaal Distillery closed in 1929 and since then Bruichladdich has tried to keep its legacy alive by distillery spirits different from the standard Bruichladdich. They've even had plans to start up the Lochindaal as their 2nd distillery and calling it Port Charlotte in the village of the same name, but this project seems to have been scrapped.

Not so long ago, I reviewed a Lochindaal from Bruichladdich here which is their 50ppm spirit.
Port Charlotte is 40ppm, so slightly less peated - at least on paper - taste wise compared to the Lochindaal spirit its much more aggressive than the only Lochindaal I've tried so far.



They're truly progressive at Bruichladdich - they have dogs driving their trucks! May 2011 © The Malt Desk

Port Charlotte 2002 127.21 (21.06.2002/xx.xx.2012) 9yo, 'Not for wuzzes' 65,9%, refill ex-bourbon barrel, 222 bottles, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

Colour is straw

Nose:
Charcoal and peat fires, orange marmelade, oregano, citrus, shellfish, vanilla, ginger and old cigar box.

Taste:
Smooth on salt, peat and all things seashore on arrival, the high abv% only showing at the back of the mouth. Creamy, lemony and more smoke and peat, finishing on salmon smokehouse and heavy malt.

A lovely Port Charlotte from a what must have been a pretty active refill cask!

86/100!

BRUICHLADDICH 1992 - CADENHEAD AUTHENTIC COLLECTION

I bought this bottle after a Cadenheads tasting in 2007 and I've had it in the cupboard for a good 5 years now and thought it was time to give it another try.

Cadenhead has long been one of my favourite indie bottlers, though the last couple of years at least to my personal experience, has sadly seen more 'duds' than usual from them...

Now Mark Watt (formerly Duncan Taylor) has joined with Cadenheads and I know Mark is able to pick out some goodies - he sure did that for Duncan Taylor! So, get cracking Mark and find us some good whisky! Rumours say you have a good supply of casks to work with...

Anyway, back to the Bruichladdich bottling distilled in 1992...

Outside Bruichladdich Distillery - May 2011 © The Malt Desk

Bruichladdich 1992 15yo (xx.xx.1992/xx.09.2007) 55,5%, ex-bourbon hogshead, 286 bottles, Cadenhead Authentic Collection

Colour is full straw

Nose:
Vanilla and peppery, heavy malt and sweet mash, grapefruits, pears, wet oak and fresh ginger.

Taste:
Forceful arrival on alcohol, salt and barley sugar, spicy oak - peppery again, juicy malt and lively oak, white fruits and a soft and light smoke trail.

A delicious Bruichladdich from the pre-Jim McEwan era and from just before the distillery went silent in 1993. Lovely!

89/100!

BRUICHLADDICH 'LOCHINDAAL' - DK IMPORTER CASK

After a short Xmas break, its time for another review of something quite special.

Around 5 years ago, Bruichladdich offered cask sales of a spirit they chose to call 'Lochindaal' named after the distillery of the same name located in the village of Port Charlotte, but closed back in 1929.

The 'Lochindaal' spirit is peated to 50ppm, which is more than the Port Charlotte spirit from Bruichladdich, the PC being 'only' 40ppm...

I'm not sure how many casks of 'Lochindaal' spirit were sold, but to my knowledge the one, I'm about to review is the first one I've seen bottled.

This, by the way, is a split cask with the guys that runs the danish whisky fair - them getting 120 bottle from the cask. Being just over 4 years old, it should have some rough edges still, but is certainly a fun one to try... :-)

Bruichladdich 'Lochindaal' 4yo 29.11.2007/12.12.2011 67,2%, cask#3332, 134 bottles, bottled for whiskylovers in Denmark by FC Whisky

Colour is pale straw

Nose:
Vanilla, manure, tickling alcohol, very little new make spirit. A malty and fruity hint carries through. Also some fresh coastal/salty notes there and surprising little peat, though detectable. Water brings out the peat though, but still not as much as expected.

Taste:
No new make spirit - only hints, creamy, buttery vanilla and malt and fruit, sweet peat also now in good measure, salt water, oysters/shellfish, a bit oily, like a bit of natural sulphur - adding to this whisky. It then finishes straight forward on peat, malt (mash) and fruity notes.

This is only 4 years old??? Wow! Great stuff! I'd love a bottle but price wise it has taken off a bit as with all whisky these days... :-/

85/100!

BRUICHLADDICH VALINCH FORBIDDEN FRUIT - DISTILLERY BOTTLE YOUR OWN

We're back on the Isle of Islay for a Bruichladdich bottling finished in one of those controversial casks - an ex Calvados cask. Bruichladdich has done loads of cask finishes - some more successful than others - and whisky drinkers have always been split (far from evenly, I might add) between traditional maturation in either ex-bourbon or sherry wood and a variety of other (wine)casks, a venture much explored by the good folks at Bruichladdich.

Personally I haven't had that many whiskies from ex-calvados casks, so I didnt really know what to expect from this one other than I would like to see a Bruichladdich not swamped in whatever cask type it has been finished in... oh, by the way - at Bruichladdich its not called a finish, its called ACE'ing your whisky (Additional Cask Enhancement)

Just to be clear, Calvados is a french apple brandy (distilled cider). More here.

This bottling is also a 'valinch' bottling from Bruichladdich, which means its a 'bottle your own' at the distillery. Its also only comes in 50cl bottles.

Bruichladdich Valinch 'Forbiden Fruit' 1992/2012 (25.09.1992) 19yo 51,6%, ACE'ed in a Christian Drouin Calvados Cask, Distillery bottling

Colour is straw

Nose:
Mashy, salt and fresh malt, vanilla, white fruits , pears and an elusive apple or am I imagining things here? also natural caramel and a hint of cardboard.

Taste:
Light grains, apple here now for sure along with the sweet natural 'Laddie style. ligther in style than expected, but still very mouth filling. Some oaky notes gives away to a creamy vinous texture at the mid palate, along with a creamy honeyed malt and sweet fruit.

This is a cask finish (sorry, ACE'ing) well done, IMO - Extremely drinkable.

86/100!

BRUICHLADDICH 1989 - CHIEFTAINS CHOICE

One of the series from indie bottler Ian Macleod is the 'Chieftain's Choice'-series.
Also from Ian Macleod you'll find 'Dun Bheagan' and NN malts like 'As we get it', 'Smokehead' and the 'Six Isles' blended malt.

More notably Ian Macleod is one of the bottlers turning distiller too, being involved in the Glengoyne Distillery outside Glasgow and more recently in the purchase of Tamdhu Distillery in Speyside.

The bottle I'm about to review have been in storage for a little over 4 years and was had on a tasting recently. I've tried it once before without taking any notes and remember it as pretty good.

Now its time to test my memory...

Bruichladdich 19yo 1989 xx.04.1989/xx.06.2008, 46%, cask#792, Chieftain's Choice

Full straw in colour

Nose:
Creamy citrus and vanilla, natural caramel, hint of seashore, minerals and apples

Taste:
Sweet'n'spicy, maybe a refill sherry cask, though the label does not state it. Salty oak and apples again. Now turning very spicy on the finish, and though the finish is short it also provides some drying wet oak and a hint of seaweed.

Very good!

87/100!

NEW RELEASE - PORT CHARLOTTE PC10

Bruichladdich makes it to the news often these days - especially with the news of their sale to French group Remy Cointreau.

This time the news is of a different nature - its a new release... and one this blogger is eager to try...

The Port Charlotte Spirit peated spirit from Bruichladdich has reached 10 years and a 6000 bottle release is due for August. The alc.% will be 59,8% and its an all ex-bourbon cask release.

Price will be around 95€ and the name of the release will be 'TRO NA LINNTEAN'

Official PC10 product sheet can be found here

Official Picture by Bruichladdich

BRUICHLADDICH SALE NOW FINAL

BRUICHLADDICH SALE NOW FINAL

The sale of Bruichladdich Distillery on Islay to French drinks giant Rémy Cointreau is now a reality. The sale will put a good deal of money into shareholders pockets as the distillery is sold for more than predicted.

Rumors also says that Rémy Cointreau will increase production and create more jobs at Bruichladdich as well as securing the existing ones, which is good news for Islay.

More here

BRUICHLADDICH TO BE SOLD TO FRENCH REMY COINTREAU GROUP

Latest news off the rumors mill is that Bruichladdich is to be sold to French Cognac and Liqueur producer - the Remy Cointreau group.

The Remy Cointreau group is after Bruichladdich because of the potential in Asian markets:

"It's a brand with strong potential for development because it is in the segment at the top of the market and complements our portfolio. The addition of a top brand would be in line with the strategy pursued by Remy Cointreau to focus on premium alcoholic drinks, which are in particular demand in Asia."

Source: The Telegraph

BRUICHLADDICH 2004 ISLAY BARLEY - DISTILLERY BOTTLING

The second young Bruichladdich is -if this was a Springbank- one that would have been labeled 'Local Barley'. It's the first Islay-grown whisky to be distilled in recent times on Kentraw Farm Foreland.

It's made entirely from unpeated Chalice barley harvested in September 2004, malted and then distilled in December the same year. It's bottled on October 1st 2011 making it just a little over 2 months short of being 7 years old.

Let's try this:

Bruichladdich Islay Barley 2004/2011 50% Kentraw Farm Foreland, 6000 bottles from American oak, Distillery Bottling

Nose:
Young whisky for sure, a dairy note, cereals, cirtus, grass and hay, hints of salt and seaweed maybe?

Taste:
Bitter citric arrival, hints of newmake spirit, but in no way unpleasant, loads of bourbon cask and spirit sweetness. Water brings out grapefruits for sure and destinct barley and cereal notes.

A pretty well executed experiment, this one - would love to try some again when it reaches its 10th year, maybe...

82/100!

BRUICHLADDICH '10' (B. 2006) - DISTILLERY BOTTLING

Have had a couple of young Bruichladdich lately, an older one -as in older bottling date- and a fairly new release, the 2004 Islay Barley. I have found both to be excellent sipping whiskies and both free of Bruichladdich's finishing regime, which is quite nice!

This first one was rumored to be the Ileachs favourite sipping whisky a few years ago.

Bruichladdich '10' 46% (b. 2006), Distillery bottling

Nose:
Vanillas, white fruits, hints of lacquer, salt, mild sweet sherry influence

Taste:
Beautiful arrival for a 10yo - again fruity, oranges in there for sure, melon, salt and other minerals and a hint of a perfumy note. There must be some older whisky involved in putting this one together.

A very easy drinker, this one... As mentioned above I'm sure I've read somewhere that the contents of this one is actually closer to 12-14 years than 10. Its a mix of ex-bourbon and refill sherry casks at a ratio of 80% bourbon 20% refill sherry where as the '15' bottled around the same time was 60% bourbon and 40% refill sherry.

85/100!