Tastes

Re-tasting, based on batch L/161142, recipe 17/092, bottled on 26 April 2017. [My original Distiller review from 19 Feb 2018 also appears below.] Nose: Soft, fragrant cereal with a generous, buxom honeyed personality. Apricot nectar, ripe peaches, vanilla flowers, melon, musk oil, night-blooming jasmine and delicate red wine notes. There's the faintest possible suggestion of smoke and a hint of briny sea-breeze in the background as well. As it rests in the glass and warms, a buttery malt aroma arises. Palate: Sweet honeyed cereal, like a bowl of rice flakes, honey, sweet yoghurt and fresh ripe white figs. Mild baking spices, but very subdued (spice biscuits warm from the oven and cooling on the table). There's a hint of apple, but primarily this whisky is a platform for cereal to show its charms. The texture is creamy and lip-smacking. Finish: Medium. Genteel, sweet and cereal, with a note of mead and Côtes du Rhône red. I strongly recommend adding about half a teaspoon of water to a one ounce dram of this whisky. That (to me anyway) allows it to sing in full voice. This batch used Scottish mainland barley and the new-make was matured in a combination of ex-bourbon barrels, PX sherry butts, Spanish Ribera del Duergo 1st fill hogheads and French Rhone 2nd fill hogsheads. I love Bruichladdich for their full-throttle geekiness in making batch recipe information available to customers. I'm also convinced that this whisky has improved by an order of magnitude over the last decade. The last time I rated it here was immediately after a Bruichladdich tasting night where it was the first dram in a flight that included some seriously impressive whiskies. In that context it rated well, but was overshadowed by the powerful presence of Port Charlotte and Octomore drams. Tasting it tonight however, in isolation and in a relaxed setting, it performs much more expressively and can be appreciated for the fine and often unsung whisky that it is. It's warm, comforting, delicious, gentle and honest, but all too easy to upstage. The seductive enthusiasm of this malt is irresistible, the distillery character being free of the distractions of intense sherry or blustering peat. This is the pure fragrant nymph that is Bruichladdich, naked other than for a gauzy robe of wine. To top it off, it's even reasonably priced. If you have not tasted this lovely dram for a while I urge you to take another look. Highly recommended. "Very Good" : 86/100 (4 stars) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Original review from 19 February 2018] Bruichladdich Masterclass, The Oak Barrel, Sydney, 19 February 2018, Whisky #1 Nose: Soft light barley, a sweet cereal nose with floral overtones reminiscent of musk, heather, jasmine and honey. A heady and full aroma. There's also a faint briny note but I don't detect any smoke. Palate: A soft arrival that develops into a warm cereal palate with mild ginger, cinnamon and cardamom spices overlaying white grape juice. Gentle orchard fruits sprinkled with brown sugar. Turkish delight. Finish: Medium/short. Soft, slightly winey, and the faintest hint of smoke in the tail. A drop of water adds a tang to the end. I've tasted this several times but only recently bought a bottle. I think this malt is sometimes overlooked in the rush to the smoky whisky shelves, which is a shame as it's interesting and different from the typical Islay profile. The nose is arguably the best part of the experience, having a warm and comforting deep floral quality that has greater weight than other floral whiskies I can think of (totally different to the light, almost ethereal flowers in Tomintoul 10, for example). The palate is not quite as good as the nose. It's not bad, in fact it's most enjoyable and comforting and follows on closely from the nose, but it is a just a little bit two-dimensional in comparison and the finish is good but not spectacular. A 4 star nose with a 2.5 star palate. This is a core expression, but with true batch production (the finishing casks vary quite a bit), so it will change a little all the time. You can find out the specific combination of casks used in your bottle by visiting the Bruichladdich site page for The Classic Laddie and entering the batch number on the label in the "Laddie Recipe" box. "Good" : 84/100 (3.75 stars) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nose: Oak. Lots of big, earthy oloroso saturated oak. This makes the nose a little one-note to start with but over time it gains complexity as toffee, orange zest, walnuts, tobacco and heavy-roast coffee grounds emerge. Some dark dried fruit aromas lurk on the sidelines and with more time red berries and a good helping of cinnamon stewed in maple syrup comes to the front. After considerable time an almost disconcerting aroma of bay rum aftershave is noticed! [The dry-glass aroma is all dark, sweaty sherry and oak with a tiny tinge of char.] Palate: A dry, astringently tannic arrival that hides deep sweet-and-sour cherry and dark chocolate notes. Walnut skins, rancio, dried fruit, wood resin, malt extract, orange peel. In its foundation the palate is sweet and fruity, but time and the particular casks chosen for maturation contribute considerable balancing dryness. The texture is creamy, but not outstanding. Finish: Long. Medium/dry sherry, warm spices (maybe even peppery?), heaps of malt extract and a little molasses. The only letdown is a tinge of flinty hardness in the aftertaste from the immense tannins. Don't judge this one quickly or on the basis of a pour from a newly-opened bottle. Give it time to open - at least 20 minutes. This is a great example of fine oloroso cask maturation paired with considerable benign sulphur in the new-make. It starts off brash but also shy and reserved, like an awkward teenager, and only gains the confidence to strike up a friendship as it relaxes. At times the palate can seem like sucking on an old barrel stave, but it's just a flash of tannins and is soon displaced by mature sweet notes. There's a touch of over-stewed old armagnac to it. It's a good whisky - actually it's a very good whisky - but personally I prefer the 15 year expression (either the old or the new one) or the fresh exuberance of the 12 year old. I have to confess that I'm not a fan of this style of whisky, so it's hard to be objective, and I will not bother trying to replace this bottle (which was from a 2017 batch). This expression gained a lot of attention as a "darling" malt a few years ago. Enthusiasts realised that because the distillery was silent for 6 years from 1996-2002 that batches produced from 2015-2019 certainly must have contained whisky of more than 18 years in age. Although true this was way over-hyped. "Very Good" : 86/100 (4 stars)

Nose: Light citrus zest and juice, blended with the gentlest possible aromatic herbal tobacco. Faint brine dances about, but it's way in the background and the breeze that carries it also bears honeysuckle, strawberry jam, tangerine, ripe peach, vanilla blossom, lilac and rose petal. After resting and developing for 20 minutes the nose gains considerable heft and takes on a leathery quality, but the initial light smoked-fruit character perseveres. Later still, a more energetic tobacco note evolves and after 40 minutes of resting in the glass this whisky is still evolving and expanding. The smoke element on the nose of this dram is of a completely different quality and class than that evinced by any other smoky whisky. C'est formidable. Palate: Masterful. Complex yet simple with waves, layers and whorls of coiling expression. The arrival and development are so closely entwined it's impossible to extricate the components. Mild peat smoke, honey, plums, berries of all description, barley sugar, marzipan, the faintest tinge of pepper and sweet chili, leathery richness, candied hazelnuts, pontefract cake, squill candy, honey jumbles, tea cake, the sweetest of red apples, smoked herring, smoked salmon, caramel ... that just scratches the surface. The signature Talisker chili "catch" is still there, but now it's a slow-burn glow that evolves in the late palate to fill the senses with a warmth like a sunny afternoon. Finish: Long. Exceptionally elegant and fruity, faintly smoky, and delightfully savory, the sum total of the palate experience gently and elegantly waltzes into the gloaming. An impeccable whisky. Seamlessly fashioned, seductive, magnificently textured - the integration and balance is a thing of beauty that brings tears to the eyes - it must be tasted to be believed. It's not cheap, but it is worth every cent. This is a desert island dram. "Outstanding" : 90/100 (5 stars)