If Fèis Ìle had taken place this year, today would have been Bruichladdich day. SLT wanted to do a remote tasting (it is his favourite distillery, so I suggested today), but, unfortunately, the samples have not yet reached tOMoH Tower. Luckily, I have a couple of Bricks to take notes for.
Bruichladdich 15yo (43%, OB imported by F.Ili Rinaldi Importatori, b.1981, 900b): I had always thought this was a 1980s bottling, but the "26.4 fl. ozs." mention on the box suggest an earlier offering. It makes no sense: Rinaldi started importing Bruichladdich into Italy in the mid-1980s. Probably an older box from previous stocks. I also do not think Bruichladdich used this livery for very long after Rinaldi became their importer. [27/02/2021 Edit: it would seem this originally came with a leaflet explaining it is a 1981 import limited to 900 bottles] Nose: a wonderful freshness that combines sea spray and cantaloupe. It has a citric side too, with peel zest, pineapple drops, crystallised tangerine segments and flat lemonade. I detect very dry wine (Sauvignon blanc, obviously), but also baked floury potatoes, faded Virginia tobacco, pine essence and dried banana slices. The melon was cantaloupe at first, yet it might just have turned into canary, now, crisp, juicy and fresh -- boy! is it fresh. And a little salty. Mouth: silky as a silk glove, it suddenly displays the salt from the nose, almost out of nowhere. That salt cannot prevent the fruit coming through, though, with cantaloupe, nectarine, mirabelle plum and even pineapple chunks. The back of the mouth feels more "regular" or "whisky-like", with toffee and butterscotch, the sorts one can find in many blends. That is not at all negative, by the way; simply surprising. Finish: toffee! Quality Street's Toffee Penny, overripe cantaloupe melon showing some bitterness, the same way it does when one scoops a bit of melon skin, or a patch that is clearly starting to rot. Bitter chocolate butter, roasted Brazil nuts, walnut oil and a spoonful of fudge. What shines brightest are the fruits, still, even though they are in an unusual state -- decaying kiwis, brown bananas, bruised apples and melons, alongside a note of ripe nectarine and satsuma peel. 8/10 (
Thanks for the dram, JS)
Bruichladdich 28yo d.1989 (53.5%, cask sample, 1st Fill Bourbon Cask, C#44, Rotation 12/174): we tried this in the distillery warehouse,
almost three years ago. I loved it then, but I was driving, so could not do more than wet my lips. JK saved the day by producing an empty container. Woo! Nose: oh! dear, it is even fruitier than the 15yo, and the fruits are in better shape, this time: canary melons, blood oranges, softening strawberries, fresh figs, honey-glazed baked apples, re-hydrated sultanas and maraschino cherries. Then, the nose becomes more floral, with sherbet, flowering currant, scented roses and almost honeysuckle, but fruitier and less fragrant. Mouth: velvety peach nectar, smashed Chinese gooseberry, pineapple chunks, smashed into a pulp. It has a tiny green note in the back, mandarin leaves or something of that ilk, but it is mostly very fruity. Fruity yoghurt with chunks, fruity custard, syrupy sugar-cane juice. The alcohol is so well integrated it feels dangerous. A multi-vitamin cocktail juice that can floor you in a few drams. Finish: it is a bit woodier here, with custard and doughnuts in the making, then almond paste and milk-chocolate mousse. The fruit is there, but it has morphed: raspberries, wild strawberries, blueberries; even the cherries are now fresh and wild, rather than maraschino. Perhaps the finish has persimmon, even, though its flesh is blended with melted milk chocolate, in that case. A'swish! 9/10 (
Thanks for the sample, JK)
Bruichladdich 15yo (43%, OB imported by F.Ili Rinaldi Importatori, b.1981, 900b): I had always thought this was a 1980s bottling, but the "26.4 fl. ozs." mention on the box suggest an earlier offering. It makes no sense: Rinaldi started importing Bruichladdich into Italy in the mid-1980s. Probably an older box from previous stocks. I also do not think Bruichladdich used this livery for very long after Rinaldi became their importer. [27/02/2021 Edit: it would seem this originally came with a leaflet explaining it is a 1981 import limited to 900 bottles] Nose: a wonderful freshness that combines sea spray and cantaloupe. It has a citric side too, with peel zest, pineapple drops, crystallised tangerine segments and flat lemonade. I detect very dry wine (Sauvignon blanc, obviously), but also baked floury potatoes, faded Virginia tobacco, pine essence and dried banana slices. The melon was cantaloupe at first, yet it might just have turned into canary, now, crisp, juicy and fresh -- boy! is it fresh. And a little salty. Mouth: silky as a silk glove, it suddenly displays the salt from the nose, almost out of nowhere. That salt cannot prevent the fruit coming through, though, with cantaloupe, nectarine, mirabelle plum and even pineapple chunks. The back of the mouth feels more "regular" or "whisky-like", with toffee and butterscotch, the sorts one can find in many blends. That is not at all negative, by the way; simply surprising. Finish: toffee! Quality Street's Toffee Penny, overripe cantaloupe melon showing some bitterness, the same way it does when one scoops a bit of melon skin, or a patch that is clearly starting to rot. Bitter chocolate butter, roasted Brazil nuts, walnut oil and a spoonful of fudge. What shines brightest are the fruits, still, even though they are in an unusual state -- decaying kiwis, brown bananas, bruised apples and melons, alongside a note of ripe nectarine and satsuma peel. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)
Bruichladdich 28yo d.1989 (53.5%, cask sample, 1st Fill Bourbon Cask, C#44, Rotation 12/174): we tried this in the distillery warehouse, almost three years ago. I loved it then, but I was driving, so could not do more than wet my lips. JK saved the day by producing an empty container. Woo! Nose: oh! dear, it is even fruitier than the 15yo, and the fruits are in better shape, this time: canary melons, blood oranges, softening strawberries, fresh figs, honey-glazed baked apples, re-hydrated sultanas and maraschino cherries. Then, the nose becomes more floral, with sherbet, flowering currant, scented roses and almost honeysuckle, but fruitier and less fragrant. Mouth: velvety peach nectar, smashed Chinese gooseberry, pineapple chunks, smashed into a pulp. It has a tiny green note in the back, mandarin leaves or something of that ilk, but it is mostly very fruity. Fruity yoghurt with chunks, fruity custard, syrupy sugar-cane juice. The alcohol is so well integrated it feels dangerous. A multi-vitamin cocktail juice that can floor you in a few drams. Finish: it is a bit woodier here, with custard and doughnuts in the making, then almond paste and milk-chocolate mousse. The fruit is there, but it has morphed: raspberries, wild strawberries, blueberries; even the cherries are now fresh and wild, rather than maraschino. Perhaps the finish has persimmon, even, though its flesh is blended with melted milk chocolate, in that case. A'swish! 9/10 (Thanks for the sample, JK)
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