Tastes

I'm lucky enough to have been blessed with a bottle of this magic russet colour liquid on the day of release from the distillery. Different in its colour to my bottle of Back Arts 6.1, which is sadly nearly done - this new edition is equally as special if not more so, as it's been made with Bruichladdich's rarest 1% of pre modern era whisky stocks coming from prior to the closure in 1994 "I don,t think we will see another Black Art like this one!" Nose – Simply stunning. Tropical fruit, coconut, tobacco, oak spices and toasted pine needles weave an intricate web of aromas. With a bit of time, this beautiful whisky opens up to waves of mango, honey-drizzled melon, warm orange zest, grilled pineapple and ripe summer strawberries. It’s mouth-wateringly succulent and fruity – the gentle oak offering coconut, ginger, buttery shortbread, vanilla custard and hints of tobacco. Palate – The viscosity and depth to this dram are out of this world; the oak notes of tobacco and brown sugar, chocolate and coconut provide the base for all those wonderful fruit combinations to shine. A drop of water and a second sip further explore the woven layers of this remarkable whisky. Finish – The succulent fruit sweetness lasts for an age on the palate, apricot, mango and baked banana, toasted sweet oak, honey and vanilla – you just don’t want it to end. For me; this is just about the perfect whiskey if there ever was such a thing - truly stunning!!!!

This is an absolute treat, it has some 33 and 25 Year old casked whisky which has been blended together and then left to macerate a little longer in Sherry butts. I don’t normally go for blends but this just popped out at me and I knew I had to have a bottle. It is fairly expensive for a blend but consider the age it feels like a bargain. I was not disappointed this is something special and am totally smitten. I think this will become hard to get quite quickly. Nose: Dried fruit soaked in sherry, red liquorice, cinnamon sticks and a hint of cherry brandy. Palate: Dark chocolate mousse, more raisins, cigar box, treacle tart and more festive spices. Finish: Jammy sultana, dates, chocolate cake, walnut and caramel.

I totally adore this..... pinning it down to a flavour profile is hard as it changes every time you try it, so at some point your going to get the following: On the Nose, Peaches in syrup; strawberries; vanilla; gingerbread; almonds; dark chocolate; coconut. In the mouth I get apples; icing sugar; mangoes; earthy spice; sea salt; walnuts; hazelnuts; sherry sweetness There is really nice creamy finish; Coconuts; sea spray; dark chocolate; tropical fruits which is reasonably long. Great Whisky

Powerful alcohol at first followed by a sweet hit of Sherry, Biscuits and Vanilla.