Tasting Notes: Ardnamurchan AD/10:22: Madeira Cask Release

Ardnamurchan AD/10:22: Madeira Cask Release (Scottish Highland Single Malt Whisky: 6 Years: 58.2% ABV)

Visual: Lovely deep gold colour with medium speed thick streaks coming from the spirit.

Nose: Christmas pudding. Brandy cream. Plums. Vanilla fudge. Warming. Lightly salty. Salted fudge. Pencil shavings. Water adds menthol, green grapes and a peppery character.

Body: Fudge. Warming. Dry oak. Madeira cakes. Sugared orange. Lightly waxy. Fatty butter. Peppery. Water makes smoother. Thai 7 spice. Sultanas. Apricot and apricot syrup. Apples.

Finish: Drying. Madeira cakes. Pencil shavings. Port soaked raisins. Vanilla toffee. Light dry, black liquorice. Thai 7 spice. Sweet orange. Menthol. Water adds peach syrup and sultanas. Slight sulphur and smoke.

Conclusion: This is a surprisingly complex dram for something that must be quite young based on how long the distillery has been open. I was expecting it to be very Madeira led and the cask strength combined with youth making it a bit burning before water.

So, basically neat I was expecting some strong flavours but fairly simple. What I got was this initially booming with plum pudding/Christmas pudding notes along with associated spirity cream notes. A delicious start. It is warming but not numbing, it is dryer Madeira cake style in the main body as the alcohol strength does make it pretty drying overall but along with those spirit and vaguely Christmas themed dessert notes there are also a good set of woody notes and peppery spice as grounding. A tad more than what I expected and definitely not as burning, but generally in line with expectations and decent. It feels stewed fruit thick, drying and very heavy. There is a waxy touch and some fatty butter feel giving it some nice play in mouthfeel, but the dryness limits how much it can express that. Then you add water, and this is when things get surprising and very interesting.

The texture is smoother and shows that waxy and fatty better mouthfeel much better. What is the big change is the peach, apricot and associated syrup notes that come out,which I presume is spirit character as it sure isn’t the Madeira. There is still spice, dark fruit and such but now with a real soft, sweet fruit against it. It is an impressive balance and a radical change from what I expected.

It is spirity, fruity, and with a tiny smokey note despite being an unpeated spirit, it may be more a sulphur note, but it is there. Lots of spicy character comes in there, and with that a fatty butter sheen that makes for a very distinct mouthfeel.

This really shows what the spirit can do and I hope for more like this as the years pass as I am very impressed.

Background: Well, this is one that vanished quickly from stock. I’d been told it had been getting some buzz so picked one up quickly. Then took until now to finally do notes on it. I am not lazy honest. My first encounter with Ardnamurchan was interesting but not a must have, but had enough that this Madeira finished release definitely was one I wanted to try. There were 5,781 bottles of this cask strength, unchill-filtered release but they still vanished quickly. It is using their unpeated malt, and a quick google says it spent five years in first fill bourbon then one year in Madeira hogsheads so I’m guessing six years full age unless there are rounding issues at play .This was grabbed from the ever helpful Independent Spirit and drunk while listening to the Best Of Mel and Kim album – feeling a bit 80s pop throwback at the moment.

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Tasting Notes: Bruichladdich: Port Charlotte: OLC: 01 – 2010

Bruichladdich: Port Charlotte: OLC: 01 – 2010 (Scotland Islay Single Malt Whisky: 55.1% ABV)

Visual: Clear gold, with a mix of slow puckering and a few fast streaks coming from the spirit.

Nose: Milk chocolate. Medicinal. Hints of black forest gateaux. Pencil shavings. Dry peat smoke. Menthol to mint. Peppercorns. Gin. Water adds so much more peat smoke. Dry white wine. Spiced cherries. Moss.

Body: Strong alcohol. Chocolate cake. Dry peat. Tart green and red grapes. Water adds sweet red grapes and spicy red grapes. Paprika. Black cherry. Tons of peat. More water adds hints of raspberry yogurt hard chunks. Strawberry crème.

Finish: Dry. Dried beef slices. Smoke. Bitter cocoa. Water adds more beef to well done beef steak character. Sweet chilli. Caramel. Strawberry yogurt touch. Peppercorns.

Conclusion: So, cards on the table, this is amazing. Ok, now with that said, let’s be harsh about this whisky first.

Deep breath. While this is good neat, unsurprisingly at over 50% abv, it is a tad burning. It means that neat it is predominantly a more medicinal, harsh and dry peat kind of thing. Punchy, but not showing any more than hints of the range that you would expect this to have based on its oak journey.

Yes, that mild criticism was me trying to be harsh to this. Did I mention I adore it?

A little water smooths it out, which somehow makes the peat much bigger, more booming and less dry. Hey, as a peat fan I am not complaining. It also managed to let a lot of the subtleties from the varied ageing come out to play, and this is where things get fun.

The chocolate, almost black-forest gateaux like, character hinted at when it was neat, now is rich, dark backing for the peat. The medicinal character from the alcohol is gone, leaving a still quite dry body but now giving a real mix of sweet cake, heavy peat and smoke and dried meat that is gorgeous.

It is dark, heavy, peaty but no longer harsh. It shows its Islay character but in far smoother ways than, say, Ardbeg or Laphroaig would do, but without compromising on the smokey character.

If you add more water then it breaks the dry character, making for an oily sheen and a mossy, Island style wet rocks character. During this time more and more grapes both red and white, sour, sweet and spiced all come out. So much now showing from its many barrel ageing influence.

So, peat laden, dark and heavy, but everything else can be from sweet gateaux or wine styled to moss and oily depending on the level of water play. Though at each level the other elements are hinted at, and giving fainter backing notes. There is so much to examine here.

With just enough water this becomes the perfect match of dessert and Islay, with so many other takes available with other amounts of water.

Come get it.

Background: Been meaning to grab a Port Charlotte bottle for a while. It is the heavily peated take on the normally unpeated Bruichladdich. Not to be confused with the very, very heavily peated take that is Octomore. I’ve tried a bunch of Port Charlotte expressions over the years, but never bought a bottle. Until now. So now I have, from the ever reliable Independent Spirit. A lot going on with this one, from the bottle it is part of the “Cask Exploration Series” and has been aged in a mix of Bourbon, Vin Doux Naturel and Syrah casks then moved for the last 18 months to oloroso casks. I cannot find what OLC means from a quick google, if you know, please let me know. Wanted big booming dark music for this, so went with Anathema: The Silent Enigma.

Tasting Notes: Glenury Royal: 1970 – 40 Year Old

Glenury Royal: 1970 – 40 Year Old (Scottish Highland Single Malt Whisky: 40 Year: 59.4% ABV)

Visual: Moderately darkened gold, with very slow puckering coming from the spirit.

Nose: Cooked apple pie. Honey. Golden Grahams. Almonds. Cinnamon apples. Vanilla toffee. Cherry pocked biscuits. Wisp of smoke. Clotted cream. Water makes spicier. Peppery. Thai seven spice jars. Crushed hard boiled sweets or the aroma of old style sweet shops. More clotted cream.

Body: Treacle and honey. Becomes warming if held but never burning. Fudge. Clotted cream. Thick. Scones with raisins. Cherries. Water adds apples. Cinnamon. Lots of vanilla fudge. Crumpets. Fatty butter.

Finish: Dry oak. Tannins and tea bags. Malt chocolate. Chives. Very drying. Water adds a rum touch. Makes spicy. Plums and red wine. Fatty butter. More chives. Almonds.

Conclusion: Ok, pretty much the most important thing early on with this was that I was really nervous about adding water. Despite in coming in at nearly 60% abv it somehow doesn’t burn at all. I guess 40 years in the oak can do that. Most of my, admittedly very limited, experience with 40 year old whisky found them to be generally very light. You really had to take your time and dig in to get the complexity from them – which is why I generally prefer to max out my whisky at 30 years. I prefer the extra umph.

This, well this is smooth, but very full flavoured and thick mouthfeel which both grabs my attention and makes me wonder if it is already at the sweet spot without adding water.

It is solidly sweet, rocking lots of honey and even some treacle mid body. Give it some time to air and it brings out a lovely, thick clotted cream character which I adore. The aroma has light, sweetly spiced apple notes, and the finish is very dry, though packed with a bit too much oak and tannins. Generally though, especially main body, this is big, rewarding and sweet with lots of subtler side notes to examine as well.

Ok, let’s take a risk. Water play time!

Water makes it a lot spicier, with more peppery notes and some Thai seven spice character – though the release from the high abv also lets more subtle sweetness come through mid body. It also makes for a much better finish – the simple dry tannins and oak now gain complex spirit and red wine notes along with spice. It is a genuine improvement, but also adds a fatty butter character which isn’t as complementary as the previous clean sweet body. Despite that both neat and with water are very good.

A very impressive whisky. Complex, deep, weighty for a 40 year old and smooth for a 60% abv one. Ok, this is a rare case where a 40 year old whisky earns it’s place beyond its slightly younger cousins. I adore this.

Background: So, how I came to pay attention to this one was noticing it was nearly 60% abv at 40 years old. With the angels share I would have though this was damn near impossible, but after contacting my better informed whisky friends it turned out it is true. Was distilled at a very high abv and probably had many other evil magic tricks to keep it this way. So, while looking I noticed that The Whisky Exchange sold it by the measure. Not just a chance to try a dead distillery that I have never tried before, but a 40 year old one. So yes I treated myself. Think that is my silly expensive whisky money gone for a long time now! Anyway the distillery was closed 1985 and has since been sold for housing development so I don’t think we are seeing this one coming back. Went with the ever awesome Against Me! – Transgender Dysphoria Blues for background music when drinking.

Tasting Notes: Signatory Vintage: Strathmill 1996: 21 Year

Signatory Vintage: Strathmill 1996: 21 Year (Scottish Speyside Single Cask Malt Whisky: 21 Year: 57.3% ABV)

Visual: Pale gold with very slow, medium thickness puckering coming from the spirit.

Nose: Heather. Honey. Intense. Pine cones. Menthol jelly. Alcohol feel, but nowhere near its abv. Peppermint. Vanilla. Crushed dry rocks. Water adds more heather to it.

Body: Warming. Honey. Custard. Crushed rocks. Alcohol gets very present if held. Apricot and fruit syrup. Golden syrup. Water adds apple notes.

Finish: Clean meed sheen. Menthol. Some greenery. Golden syrup. Warming. Water adds thick pear notes. Apple pie. Malt toffee and malt chocolate. More more honey and mead as you add more water. Then fatty butter, dry oak and white chocolate.

Conclusion: Ok this somehow balances a nearly 60% abv spirit with over 20 years of soothing and it results in quite the sweet beast.

The alcohol is definitely there, but never burning – even if held on the tongue it just becomes very, very present. Instead the high alcohol shows itself as an uber thick, chewy, syrupy feeling dram.

It is very sweet, honeyed at its best into golden syrup at its heaviest with smoother custard notes in-between. There is syrupy apricot notes dropped in, and even the menthol notes have a jellied feel to them. I’m loving it. In fact I’m loving it so much that I am kind of nervous about adding water – but I need to see what happens for the notes. Right now it is just on the edge of being too much alcohol and sweetness but doesn’t quiet fall over. I love it.

Sooo, water. I put in a reasonable amount and it is still thick as heck but now with pear and apple sweetness added in for some more complexity. It is even better balanced and with better range. Score! Such a burst of big sunshine fruit.

You can pretty much batter it with water and it still works. Fatty and buttery notes comes out and it becomes a tad more easy going but still a heck of a whisky.

So, my first meeting with this distillery and I love it. Big, just about smooth enough, chewy and lots of flavours booming in a sweeter style. Oh yeah.

Background: A while back I made the list of living Scottish malt distilleries I had yet to try. This is the last of that list. Now a bunch of new distilleries have popped up since, not sure which have actually turned out whisky yet, or generally available whisky anyway, know at least one that has done a super tiny 3 year release. Still, BOOM LAST ONE! Now to make the new list. Also looking longingly at the dead distilleries I will most likely never try as they charge a grand a bottle. This was available as part of The Whisky Exchange’s “The Perfect Dram” 3cl bottlings of existing whisky – gave a me a good way of trying this older dram without dropping too much money, even if it is expensive an a per cl basis. This was from cask 2098, if that means anything to you. Went with X-Ray Specs: Germ Free Generation again as music, really giving that a play a lot at the mo. Looked this distillery up in one of Michael Jackson’s whisky books after drinking. He lists it as “The whisky world’s answer to orange muscat. With dessert” which makes a lot of sense to me after this one.

Tasting Notes: Elements Of Islay: Pi 6

Elements Of Islay: Pi 6 (Scottish Islay Single Malt Whisky:7 Year: 55.3% ABV)

Visual: Very light, clear gold. Slow thick streaks come from the spirit.

Nose: Sooty peat. Charred oak. Clean. Beef slices. Water makes smoother.

Body: Honey. Thick. Oily. Soot. Malt chocolate. Chilli seeds. Water adds beef slices. Ginger and more chilli seed. Buttery. Nut oils. Cleanly medicinal.

Finish: Soot. Vanilla. Nut oils. Oily. Water adds chilli seeds. More alcohol burn. Buttery. Medicinal.

Conclusion: This is a sooty, oily whisky. Initially though it comes across as sweet and honeyed on those early sips, but it quickly moves beyond that to become thing with oily, sooty thickness. Despite that it somehow manages to keep a slightly clean medicinal character as a base.

It feels very much every inch the Islay, rocking as it is the soot and the medicinal character. Admittedly it has less salty and meaty than usual, but still it weighs just enough of that to be identifiable. It is a very clean dram up front, ending up instead as a thick sooty and gritty dram on the way out.

Water brings out a bit of heat to it. With more of the high alcohol being evident, and a mix of chilli seeds and ginger warmth. It feels big and thick, mouth coating and warm.

It is good, but for the price tag it does not stand out as a special one. It is a clean and polished example of the Islay, with a bit of sooty grittiness at the end to pep it up. That works well, but doesn’t push the limits of what can be done with a good whisky.

Very nice still, slightly buttery as well, something that seems to be a trend at the uber whisky tasting tonight. If I had to pick an element that stands out it is more oily than the norm considering how clean the rest of the dram is – so if you want that oilier take on clean medicine this may catch your eye. Otherwise I would say the far cheaper Laphraog Quarter Cask is still the way to go for a good Islay drop. This is nice but not stand out

Background: 400th Whisky Tasting Note! I actually had something special set aside for no 400, but since it fell on the final entry of an Uber whisky tasting it seemed rude to not go with this one instead. Soooo … Uber whisky time again at Independent Spirit. I love these events, where you get to try some pretty rare whisky that would normally be prohibitively expensive by the dram. As always with events like these, it was a busy event, with talking and other people describing notes so I may have been influenced by that and my notes may be shorter and more incoherent than even normal. Elements of Islay do slightly smaller than normal, 50cl independent bottles of Islay whisky with the faux chemical letter identifying the distillery. In this case Pi is Port Charlotte. Hey don’t ask me, I didn’t pick it. Port Charlotte is itself a heavily peated take on Bruichladdich. A quick google tells me this was aged in a mix of three bourbon barrels. Should be interesting.

Tasting Notes: Heaven Hill: Parker’s Heritage Barrel Finished in Orange Curacao

Heaven Hill: Parker’s Heritage Barrel Finished in Orange Curacao (USA: Bourbon Whiskey: 55% ABV)

Visual: Deep gold. Fast thick streaks followed by thin puckering.

Nose: Peppery. Subtle orange sweetness and orange skins. Orange liqueur. Washing up liquid. Dust. Water brings out mint leaves and peppermint.

Body: Smooth and thick. Peppery. Treacle. Strong alcohol. Menthol. Mint leaves. Water adds rye crackers and cocktail bitters.

Finish: Orange liqueur. Menthol. Peppermint. Peppery. Shreddies. Mint leaves. Water adds aniseed and cocktail bitters.

Conclusion: You know, I expected this to be more orangey. I mean, I’m not going to lie, there is a very reasonable amount of orange going on, but what actually stands out from it is something completely different – a strange minty character. I did not see that one coming.

So, before we get too deep into that, let’s look at the base. This rocks the peppery, solid, possibly a touch rye backed bourbon style (google tells me about 10% rye, makes sense). As a bourbon it is solid but unexceptional.

If you look behind the bourbon notes you then find the subtle orange, mixed with cocktail bitters, all which make for understated but highly unusual notes for this odd bourbon. It feels slightly closed and dusty as well, over a thick and slightly treacle feel, yet also somehow smooth body,

Then, as mentioned and you knew I was going to come back to this, we have those minty notes – an oddly vegetable meets fresh peppermint to savoury green leaves style thing. It is all interesting, all unusual, all makes me take my time and examine it, and all makes it one I would not really return to after. It could be a good character elsewhere, but the savoury vegetable like elements of it really stick here.

I mean, it is a fascinating mix that takes a standard bourbon and spins something very different out and makes it interesting – but for the price I need more than interesting. Glad I tried, would not try again.

Background: Uber whisky time again at Independent Spirit. I love these events, where you get to try some pretty rare whisky that would normally be prohibitively expensive by the dram. As always with events like these, it was a busy event, with talking and other people describing notes so I may have been influenced by that and my notes may be shorter and more incoherent than even normal. Oddly I thought bourbon had to be entitrely aged in fresh oak, but this is listed as bourbon and is finished in Orange Curacao cask, so I may be wrong. Anyway, this have been made in memory of the deceased master distiller Parker Beam and is the 12th edition of their releases under that name, each with a different take. I think some money from each bottle sold goes to a charity linked with how the master distiller passed away, but I’ve been having a hard time finding out exactly which charity by googling. Let me know if you know please.

Tasting Notes: Red Breast: Cask Strength 12: 2018 Edition

Red Breast: Cask Strength 12: 2018 Edition (Irish Single Pot Still Whiskey: 12 Year: 58.2% ABV)

Visual: Bright honeyed gold, streaks come down as a thick sheet.

Nose: Dried apricot. Vanilla. Honey. Green grapes. Sultanas. Thick and smooth. Shredded wheat. Smoke wisp. Water makes more gentle. Touch of liquorice. Golden syrup sponge.

Body: Honey. Warming alcohol. Apricot. Plums. Mince pies. Water adds oats and muesli. Lots of honey. Buttery. Vanilla fudge.

Finish: Honey. Apricot. Vanilla toffee. Brandy cream. Fig rolls. Water makes a more spirity air. Buttery.

Conclusion: This is very rich and strong – as you may expect from a cask strength whiskey this has more alcohol weight that your average Red Breast, but thankfully still manages to come across fairly smooth. The flavours are pushed up a bit as well – fruity apricot notes matched with a huge amount of sherry influence, giving lots of dark fruit and brandy cream styled notes.

Neat it is intense and fruity, full bodied despite the smoothness. It has a tad too much alcohol, but generally great. I minorly prefer their exceptional Lustra Edition of Red Breast for overall balance and smoothness. This however has a weight and quality all of its own. Water makes it a little smoother, but with that it loses a lot of the range, weight and joy that makes it special. Still, it has a lot to offer even then – still lovely with crumpet like notes and toffee, more gentle sweetness and because of that more towards a standard 12 year Red Breast. Which is still good. However if you have gone to the effort of getting a Cask Strength I would guess you want that, otherwise you could just buy a standard edition.

So, if you want this, accept its weight and the alcohol that will come with it and all that comes with that. This is a rough edged gem if taken as it should be – neat – but gives you plenty in exchange.

Background: Uber whisky time again at Independent Spirit. I love these events, where you get to try some pretty rare whisky that would normally be prohibitively expensive by the dram. As always with events like these, it was a busy event, with talking and other people describing notes so I may have been influenced by that and my notes may be shorter and more incoherent than even normal.
Now this is something interesting as it is hard to find since Jim Murray labelled this batch, Batch B1-17, as best best Irish whiskey and best Irish pot still whiskey. As was pointed out at the tasting this year’s batch will be out soon at far more reasonable price and for far less cost (for a while at least). I’ve become a huge fan of Red Breast over the years, so this was a rare treat to check out.

Tasting Notes: Berry Bros and Rudd: Orkney Islands 17 Year

Berry Bros and Rudd: Orkney Islands 17 Year (Scottish Island Single Malt Whisky: 17 Year: 56.4% ABV)

Visual: Very light yellowed gold. Fast, thick streaks come initially from the spirit, followed by slow puckering.

Nose: Caramel. Vanilla toffee. Honeyed shreddies. Wisp of smoke. White grapes. Pencil shavings. Water makes mossy and brings out more oak.

Body: Burning alcohol. Crumpets. Charred oak. Butter. Water makes more buttery and adds shortbread.

Finish: Charred oak. Bitter. Light salt and sea breeze. Water adds wet rocks. Butter. Peppery.

Conclusion: Ok, for one, this needs water. Neat it is burning, buttery and very much lacking in any subtlety. Not that the aroma lets you know what is coming, oh no, that aroma is a sneaky one. It tells you that what is coming is sweet and gentle with just a wisp of smoke. Lying fucking aroma.

Now water does its job and smooths the alcohol down, making it into a very robust (and I mean VERY robust) crumpety, bready, buttery dram, with a peppery finish and still that wisp of smoke. It is heavy feeling and still very different from that sweet, gentle aroma. If you pay attention there are slight grapes, slight vanilla, but generally it is just a straight forward crumpets and butter kind of savoury thing.

So, with that said, it is not a favourite of mine. Some people at the tasting seemed to get more from it than I did, but for me it is too burning neat, and still too simple with water, so overall is a comparatively empty dram flavour wise.

Feels solid in texture, but feels like the base of a whisky to be built from, rather than a decent whisky in itself. A pity as I love a good Highland Park (sorry, a good “Orkney Islands” WINK), but this one doesn’t grab me.

Background: Uber whisky time again at Independent Spirit. I love these events, where you get to try some pretty rare whisky that would normally be prohibitively expensive by the dram. As always with events like these, it was a busy event, with talking and other people describing notes so I may have been influenced by that and my notes may be shorter and more incoherent than even normal. Now, while this could be one of two Orkey distilleries, it is blatantly a Highland Park. They barely even try to hide it. I’m a big fan of Highland Park, not revisited them for a while so had high hopes for this. From the bottle it was distilled 2000 and bottled 2018.

Tasting Notes: Douglas Laing: Bowmore XOP 21 Year

Douglas Laing: Bowmore XOP 21 Year (Scottish Islay Single Malt Whisky: 21 Year: 56.2% ABV)

Visual: Clear greened grain. Mid sized streaks come out from the spirit.

Nose: Smoke. Smooth peat. Light moss. Very smooth and clean. Oily fish skin. Lightly medicinal. Batter. Water changes little.

Body: Oily fish skin. Sweet apples. Smooth. Cinder toffee. Grapes. Light ash. Slight salt. Water adds more grapes and some smoke.

Finish: Cinder toffee. Oily fish skin. Seaweed. Crème brulee. Slight ash. Grapes. Water adds more smoke, slightly peppery.

Conclusion: This is so clean, so smooth for the abv, so polished. It has got salt, slight medicinal character as you would expect from and Islay, but low peat and no fancy barrel ageing altering the flavour. What you get is very smooth vanilla, tinned tropical fruit and grape notes that speak to a very long time in a bourbon barrel. It doesn’t act unusually, but it does have the standard notes delivered ultra smoothly.

The lighter touch lets green fruit notes come out and mix with the lighter medicinal character. If you are worried from this description that the whisky is going to be too light for you, let me reassure you that there are still notes such as an oily fish skin heaviness, notes that bring a thicker character to a gentle alcohol weight whisky. For people who have tried a lot of Bowmore I’d say imagine a mix of the 12 and 18 year, taken the best elements of the two, smoothing massively and putting out at higher alcohol strength and polish.

Water smooths it out even more if you can believe that making for a very easy to sip Islay, but it doesn’t open up any new notes. Now it tastes nowhere near the abv it is pushing out, even taking into account the water, so smooth, with the only flaw is that it doesn’t stand out with any unique elements. It is not super different in flavour to the younger expressions but it is very polished and enjoyable. A very refined take on a classic.

Background: What is there to say for this one? – fourth of the five whiskies tasted at Independent Spirit‘s recent Uber Whisky tasting night. As always with sessions like this I was doing notes in a group environment, so may be a tad more scattershot than normal but I do my best. So, I have had some bloody good experience with the XOP range from Douglas Laing. Also, seriously, I love Bowmore, though they do such a wide range of expressions it is hard to know what you will get in any bottling. To paraphrase one of my favourite quotes on Bowmore – If you can’t find a Bowmore expression you enjoy it may be time to ask if whisky is for you. This one of 317 bottles taken from a single cask.

Tasting Notes: Bruichladdich: Micro Provenance Cask Evolution Exploration: Sauternes 2006

Bruichladdich: Micro Provenance Cask Evolution Exploration: Sauternes 2006 (Scottish Islay Single Malt Whisky: 12 Year: 58.4% ABV)

Visual: Light clear gold. Fast thick streaks from the spirit.

Nose: Cloying sweet apricot. Dessert wine. Pears. Grapes. Light rubber. Water adds wine gums sweets. More water adds slight salt.

Body: Pears. Almost evaporates on the tongue. Water brings out dessert wine. Vanilla. Light tannins. More water adds dried banana, more apricot. Even more water adds vanilla and slight salt.

Finish: Pears. Dry. Mineral water. Alcohol air. Water adds vanilla. Toffee. Dessert wine. Wine gums.

Conclusion:This is so strong yet sweet. The expected dessert wine and apricot notes come out from the neat spirit, yet more than that you get subtle pear and grape notes underneath, I’m guessing native spirit characters accentuated by the sweetness to give more complexity than often comes from this sweet and sometimes overpowering barrel ageing.

Neat the strong alcohol means that it almost evaporates off the tongue, giving no peat, no salt or any of the expected Islay character. It is clean, slightly rubbery, but with gentle fruit over an impressive alcohol weight but restrained burn. To get the spirit to stick around and to get the slight Islay salt character coming out you need to add a fair amount of water, but don’t worry, it can take it.

Even with water it is so very clean in the spirit character, lots of dry yet sweet dessert wine, and that gentle fruit, with the pear and apricot given more room to roam. The lack of overt Islay character is matched by a lack of lot of the Bruichladdich style. Instead you get lots of subtle complexity from the oak, lots of depth in those sweeter flavours for the water to bring out.

If it had more influence from the native Bruichladdich spirit then I would have no hesitation in recommending this as an absolute stonker. As is it is a very nice show of oak ageing, especially with water, and has wonderful subtlety in its weight.

Background: This was the third of five whiskies at Independent Spirit‘s Uber whisky tasting. I love those things, a chance to try five whiskies I might not otherwise get to try. As always with tastings like this it was in a social environment so I may have been influenced by people around me and the notes may be slightly shorter than usual. Hope you still enjoy. Anyway, this one is from Bruichladdich’s cask experimentation, made with optic barley and aged in the unusual Sauternes which in my experience adds a lot of sweetness to a whisky, so should be interesting seeing how it interacts with the Islay character here.