Tastes

(The Spirits Embassy – The Bruichladdich Virtual Tasting Night, 26 March 2021). Nose: Light peat, orchard fruit, berry jam, damp hay, maple syrup Palate: Rich, oily, fragrant smoke (Applewood), fruity/jammy with some nutty/oak notes. Finish: Black pepper, slightly drying. Salt and citrus notes, with a lovely dried fruit on the finish. 9y/o, finished then finished in Oloroso sherry casks for 18months 40ppm 1 of 30,000 bottles OLC: Sherry cask - OLoroso Cask Casked in a mix of 1st/2nd fill ex-bourbon casks and Syrah vin doux naturel casks Finished in casks from Fernando de Castilla in Jerez This has a lovely jammy/peaty finish. There's a great sweet fruit note that comes through the fragrant peat smoke. Delicious!

(The Spirits Embassy – The Bruichladdich Virtual Tasting Night, 26 March 2021). Nose: Light peat, damp hay, salty and slightly farmyard. There is a very slight sulphur note Palate: Sweet, smoke, salt/saline, orchard fruit - pear & Granny Smith green apples. Very light floral hints. Finish: Sweet and slightly souring, moving towards orange zest on the aftertaste. Leaves a lovely damp sweet smoke note on the long finish to complement the orange zest. This has a delicious light peatiness when compared to the wilder peat flavours of Laphroaig/ Ardbeg/ Lagavulin. Delicious dram! 75% 1st & 2nd fill ex-bourbon 25% 2nd fill French Syrah red wine casks

(The Spirits Embassy – The Bruichladdich Virtual Tasting Night, 26 March 2021). Nose: Barley sugar, boiled sweets, seaweed, saline Palate: A little hotter and sweeter than the Classic Laddie. Floral, vanilla, apple and pear / orchard fruit Finish: Citrus and sour on the finish with some almond/nutty/oak notes. The finish is very sweet overall. Quite an oily mouthfeel - almost chewy. This has very similar notes to the Classic Laddie, but much sweeter. This is apparently due to the later harvest of the Islay barley. 75% bourbon casks / 25% French sweet white wine casks

(The Spirits Embassy – The Bruichladdich Virtual Tasting Night, 26 March 2021). Nose: Sweet, honey, boiled sweets, sweetened breakfast cereal, floral, salty, orange zest Palate: Fruit (apple & pear), demerara sugar, cloves, ginger Finish: Saline, citrus, salted caramel, warming 100% Scottish barley 100% maturation on Islay Apparently, Bruichladdich currently have over 70,000 casks maturing on Islay This is still a classic and one I always have on the shelf. The finish is very warm and pleasantly souring on the aftertaste.

All grains used in the distilling are grown within 50 miles of the distillery Nose: Vanilla, caramel, hay, bread flour. Dry & grassy Palate: Sweet, vanilla, caramel. There are floury/ powdery and creamy notes Finish: Sweet, summer berries, oak, boiled sweets This dram has a sweet berry note throughout that sours on the aftertaste. There’s also a doughy/ floury note and a powdery mouthfeel that is quite off putting.

Nose: Herbal, marzipan, berries, orange, vanilla Palate: Very sweet. Dark chocolate, vanilla, caramel, berries - strawberries/summer fruit, boiled sweets. Has an artificial note. Finish: Cherries, vanilla, summer berries, Victoria sponge cake. Very sweet with summer berries upfront and a darker more bready note at the finish. There is a slightly artificial note throughout that brought it down in score for my taste. It's not a particularly layered or nuanced dram, but as a summer sipper it's very tasty.

Nose: Sweet, orchard fruit, caramel, honey, orange Palate: Sweet, caramel, vanilla, brown sugar, floral/herbal Finish: Liquorice, black pepper, cardamon. Slight woodiness and charring. This is a very sweet dram, but with a burned/caramelised fruit note throughout. This pleasantly surprised me, it is much tastier and layered than I was expecting.

Nose: Pears/apples. Strong alcohol. Acetone Palate: Milk chocolate, mocha, baking spices (cloves), pears and apples. Finish: Sugar, crème brûlée and vanilla initially. Develops towards a burned/charred, funky/farmyard note. It's leathery and sweet with a hint of kids chocolate banana sweets on the aftertaste. There's a creamy, thick mouthfeel I wasn't expecting. Chewy, tasty and with lots of interesting layers throughout.

Nose: Pear & vanilla, acetone, sour/citrus Palate: Gristy, nutty, oak, ginger. Very light on the palate. Finish: Light stone fruit, white pepper, slightly bitter on the aftertaste Creamy mouthfeel. Very easy to drink. There's not a lot to this whisky, but it is pleasant for what it is. Ultimately not very memorable or remarkable.

Nose: Marzipan, sherry, dried fruit, nutty Palate: Creamy, heavily sherried, sweet, jammy (strawberry) compote, figs. Strawberry/raspberry ripple ice cream. Finish: Cream and strawberry jam. There is a little spice at the very end. This is a simple, uncomplicated fruity whisky. Sweet, berries/fruit and jam. There are not many layers to it, but that is no criticism at all. Tasty.