Bruichladdich was a distillery that had to grow on me, since i wasn't fully a fan at the beggining of times, and i still think some of their more affordable expressions are often "soapy" with "shampoo" notes. Having said that, this is not the case, since this Black Art is one of their greatest releases.
Black Art was an annual release by Bruichladdich, and only Jim McEwan knew the types of casks used, supposedly hand picked in the middle of a full moon light. This one is their 07.1 release, a 25yo whisky.
Bottled at 48.4% abv this has a copper color.
On the nose, it is outstanding. Bacon, red fruits, maraschino cherries and the almighty "soap" note i get from every "Laddie". Recently baked Brownies and a floral note. Glazed ham and freshly clean towels. Great stuff almost perfect.
On the palate it is a red fruits bomb. Frozen hershey's strawberry syrup. Pepper spice and hints of salt. Metallic and red fruits. Strawberries, a beautiful red chilli as well. After some sips, it gave me brownies, chocolate and metallic notes. Incredible.
Aftertaste is a wonderful finish for this great dram. Hay, tobacco, salt and sulphur. Earthy and very metallic. Super dry and fairly spicy.
Overall, this one was a monster of a dram, i just loved every part of it. I don't even know why i am deducting points here, because this is so complex, with clean well delivered flavors and aromas. Really one of Bruichladdich's best offerings out there, my score for this one is 97 over 100.