27 August 2024.
The Line Up Project :
It's been almost two years since I last visited Bruichladdich. It's a distillery that I love, and a brand that I like more and more. And what has happened in two years? In my previous Line Up, I said, among other things, that they needed a better regular range. They have Classic Laddie, but that's not enough. You need older expressions to give a clear idea of what the brand is and what it does. And today, an 18 year old has been released. It caused quite a stir, of course, and so much the better. And I thought it was a good opportunity to take another look at what's being done in this distillery.
They are famous for Octomore, for Port Charlotte, and in the meantime we tend to forget this distillery's 3rd brand, the eponymous Bruichladdich, which is devoted to unpeated whiskies. It's a shame, because I think what they're doing there is very interesting. It has become one of my favourite unpeated brands, behind Bunnahabhain and a few others, but among the best.
So you should never miss an opportunity to talk about and promote this brand, and I'm doing my bit for the good of the community by recommending it to you.
In this Line Up, we'll find 4 original expressions, which show just what the brand is capable of, and 5 proposed by independent bottlers, at least those who use the brand the most. This will give us a range that I hope is representative.
The Tasting :
Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley : Eternal and sole representative of the Core Range under the Bruichladdich brand, this unpeated and unaged expression needs no introduction.
Cereals tinged with limestone and slightly earthy, a touch of iodine, mint, aniseed. Slightly light on the palate, with vanilla, wheat and peppery spices. A strong finish, but a tad short, vegetal, vetiver, puffed rice.
Score : 84
Bruichladdich 2008 Bere Barley 9 yo : I hadn't tasted Bere Barley for a long time. It's a more or less annual range made with a barley that fell into disuse because it wasn't profitable enough. It shows just how important a role barley plays in the whisky-making process.
A smoother, more balanced nose of cereals, earth, vanilla. A hint of iodine and limestone. It's mellow, yoghurt cake, creamy honey, brioche. Expressive palate, citrus fruit and wood, it's full-bodied, with spices that aren't too strong. Long, robust finish, caramel, shortbread biscuits, marzipan
. Score : 86
Bruichladdich 2004 Re/Define Eighteen 18 yo : So here's this 18 year old. I didn't understand whether it was part of the Core Range, or whether it was an annual limited edition. In any case, this first Batch was distilled in 2004. Triple matured in Bourbon, Sauternes and Port casks.
The nose is rockier, more mineral and more precise. The Sauternes casks bring some fruit. The Port brings a nice roundness. Whiffs of iodine. On the palate, it's almost silky, rosewater, then fairly strong but elegant spices. The finish is long and beautiful, with cloves, vegetal notes, honeysuckle and chlorophyll.
Score : 87
Bruichladdich 1992 Cadenhead's Authentic Collection 22 yo : Whatever the distillery, you can trust Cadenhead. It is Scotland's oldest bottler, now owned by the Mitchell family, who also own Springbank and Glengyle. Here we have a fine bottling aged in a Bourbon Hogshead.
Macerated grapes, dates. Wood resin, stuffed figs, liquid caramel. Iodine and limestone in the background. Almonds, shortbread biscuits. Perfect on the palate, with just the right amount of citrus, green fruit and discreet spices. Very long, magnificent finish, candied angelica, bay leaf, woody caramel.
Score : 90
Bruichladdich 1990 Valinch The Purest Whisky in Scotland 15 yo : When they bought the distillery in 2000, after it had been closed for six years, Mark Reynier and Ian McEwan had the idea of releasing some Valinch, which are limited editions in Single Cask. At the time, they had nothing else to sell. This practice continues in the distillery today.
Quite strong cereals, honeyed vanilla. Apple crumble, speculoos. Shortbread biscuits. Puffed rice, toasted wheat. Calissons d'Aix. Liquorish palate, candied fruit, mountain honey, fairly strong spices. Vanilla and almond. Long finish, full of cloves and brown sugar, apricot, fudge, nougatine.
Score : 88
Bruichladdich 2001 The Fishes of Samoa 18 yo : Archives is a Dutch bottler founded by the people behind Whiskybase, the world's largest whisky database. I trust them completely, everything I've drunk from them has been excellent, especially this little thing from a single Sherry cask.
Very rich Sherry, dried banana. Prunes, chocolate cake. Salted butter toffee. Very dense palate, chocolate and coffee, noble old wood. Figs. Barely perceptible spices. Damp leather. Extremely long, languorous finish, caramel, hazelnuts, dates, cocoa powder.
Score : 91
Bruichladdich 1990 Cask Strength Collection 24 yo : Signatory Vintage is a well-known and irreproachable bottler. It's a benchmark, especially for Sherry cask bottlings like this one.
The sherry here is less intense, more apricot, dates and candied quince. Varnished wood. The palate is very woody and chocolatey, with fairly strong spices. Some red fruit, but discreet. Quite long finish, but not so explosive, liquorice stick, damp earth, blackcurrant and fig.
Score : 88
Bruichladdich 2009 Rest & Be Thankful Whisky C° 13 yo : Rest & Be Thankful is a trading company founded by former Bruichladdich collaborators, with whom they still have an excellent relationship. It goes without saying that they bottle a lot of casks from this distillery, and the quality is often very good. Here, we have the result of a cask of red wine from the Pauillac appellation.
A very velvety nose, with red fruit that seems to dance, blackcurrant that explodes, wood and stuffed figs. The palate is slightly syrupy, almost acidic, redcurrants, green apples, caramel and chocolate mousse. Long, woody, chocolatey finish. Some coffee beans
. Score : 89
Bruichladdich 2013 Rest & Be Thankful Whisky C° 10 yo : Same bottler, but different ageing. Here we have a younger product, aged in a single Bourbon cask.
Beeswax, rustic vanilla, young wood, iodine fullness. A few mineral and honeyed touches. Genoise. Marzipan. Very balanced palate, creamy vanilla, citrus fruit, bread dough, robust spices. Powerful finish, destroying everything in its path, cloves, cumin, shortbread biscuits. Semi-salted butter.
Score : 89
What I gain from it :
- After such a tasting, we have a pretty good idea of the distillery's hallmarks: intense, rustic cereals, it's farmy, but also fruity, particularly dried fruit, especially almonds. A touch of iodine, but light, and biscuity notes, mainly shortbread biscuits.
- I have to be honest, this new 18-year-old is a disappointment for me. I know that many people are very happy with it, and good for them. For me, it seems too unexpressive, lacking in character and depth. It's rare for Bruichladdich to disappoint me, but I can't put it any other way. It's difficult to negotiate well that moment when the distillery becomes venerable and releases aged expressions. In an aged bottling, you have to be able to preserve the character of the distillery and combine it with the influence of the casks, which will inevitably be very important. This is no easy task. I don't think we've succeeded here, but I hope to see an improvement very soon.
- Independent bottlings are of course the most interesting, this is the case for most distilleries. Rest & Be Thankful offers the most solid opportunities, with often attractive value for money, but you can pick and choose from all the major bottlers.
- Bruichladdich is a brand that lends itself well to bottling in Bourbon casks. It brings out its farmy character. For Sherry, we already have GlenDronach, Bunnahabhain, Glen Elgin, Macallan, Mortlach and Glenfarclas. For Bourbon, Bruichladdich can stand alongside Tobermory, but a little behind Linkwood and a few others. Bruichladdich remains the unpeated brand I know best, which lends itself very well to ageing in Bourbon casks.
- Bruichladdich is also the brand that experiments the most. Original ageings, such as wine or port casks, and triple maturations. But also whisky made from organic barley or unusual types. Above all, Bruichladdich is about people looking for new things, testing new things, and we should pay tribute to them for that.
Conclusion :
Bruichladdich is a brand worth trying. You can either go for their daring limited bottlings or for the independent bottlings, which are very varied and all interesting. It's an original brand that deserves to be up there with the best unpeated distilleries.
However, it still has a bit of trouble with its Core Range. Perhaps, before trying an 18yo, they should have tried a 12 or 14yo? The 10-year-old and the 16-year-old have already been tried, but they have been discontinued for a long time. The problem is also to build up an interesting Core Range, without overshadowing the limited editions, Islay Barley, Bere Barley and other Valinch, Organic, Micro-Provenance, etc. But perhaps the real problem is that there are a few too many limited editions. That's the thing about distilleries where you're looking: you find lots of different things.
Bruichladdich is a bit like a young distillery. The long closure of 6 years between 1995 and 2001, not to mention the long years of reduced production that began in the 80s, left heavy marks that will not disappear immediately. It takes a very long time to really build a distillery, it takes decades. And Bruichladdich has done a good job so far. All that's left now is to build some fine older expressions, 18 years or more. Not single casks, but noble, subtle blendings that will reflect the distillery's identity. This is the last and most difficult step on the way to reaching the level of Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Springbank and others, who have never had to suffer long closures.
