Bunches of Bunnahabhain


February 20, 2017

Bunches of Bunnahabhain - part seis

No we’re not done with Bunnahabhain!

Bunnahabhain 23 yo 1991/2015 (49.3%, Lockett Bros, the Island of Bass, sherry hogshead, cask #5420)

I had thought I’d do a silly joke with the Island of Bass and Jaco Pastorius but no… Colour: gold. Nose: ah, a rather tropical one this time. Tinned guavas and mangos, plus a little vanilla and acacia honey. Those wee pink bananas. Before that became un-PC, I’d have added that it’s a little feminine. Mouth: reminds or some early 1970s Bowmore. More tropical fruit purée mixed with some soft oak tannins and various herbal herbs. Our faithful chamomile tea, for example. Touches of malt, hints of roasted nuts. Finish: medium, with the usual salty tang, as they say in brochures. Comments: rather wonderful. SGP:551 - 87 points.

Bunnahabhain 23 yo 1991/2015 (47.5%, Whisky-Fässle, for WET, hogshead)

A sister, I suppose…

Bunnahabhain 23 yo 1991/2015 (47.5%, Whisky-Fässle, for WET, hogshead) I don’t know what WET is, but there’s a diving duck on the label. Colour: gold. Nose: almost the same as the Lockett, just a tad less fruity, and a notch grassier. Mouth: so very good! Some kind of salted fruit salad, with grasses and herbs thrown in. Very very good. Finish: long, clean, citrusy, salty. Comments: why would you need a longer tasting note? What’s sure is that this baby’s very ‘Islands’, with a perfect cut and no nutty flavours. SGP:551 - 88 points.

Bunnahabhain 24 yo 1989/2014 (42.9%, Berry Bros & Rudd, cask #5716)

Berry bros already had some excellent 1989, especially one for Taiwan (cask #5894, WF 89). Colour: straw. Nose: another very fresh and fruity one. Wandering throughout an orchard in Kent (wherever) in the midst of July. Greengages, a few remaining cherries, gooseberries… Also something slightly hotter. New kirsch? Mouth: as often with these low-strength oldies, the oak started to take over, and you cannot not feel strong black tea and its tannins. Other than that, same fresh ‘western’ fruits, especially plums. Finish: short to medium, fruity, with tea tannins in the background. Perhaps a few slices of bananas. Comments: pretty good again, it’s just that the oak started to feel a little more. SGP:551 - 82 points.

Bunnahabhain 27yo 1987/2014 (51.9%, The Whisky Agency for TFWS Taiwan, Refill Hogshead, 190 bottles)

Colour: pale gold. Nose: it’s one of those beautifully honeyed 1987s again. Beeswax, touches of earth and humus, pollen, apples, plums… And indeed, all-flower honey. Perfect. With water: honeycomb and apple pie, with a little Virginia tobacco as well. Mouth (neat): very good, bright, quite citrusy, then a little more mango-ish, then a little more honeyed, with touches of mint and eucalyptus in the background. Perfect balance. It gets even zestier and more lemony/limy over time. With water: really wonderful, honeyed, orchardy, very mildly waxy… Finish: medium, with a little cracked pepper over this wonderful honeyed fruit salad. The usual salty touch in the aftertaste, very discreet here. Comments: as we sometimes write, this one’s dangerously drinkable. SGP:651 - 89 points.

Bunnahabhain 39 yo 1976/2016 (49.4%, Cadenhead, Small Batch, sherry butts)

Colour: gold/amber. Nose: first, it’s not too oaky. Second, there is some caramel and fudge, but also many flowers and honeys, nothing is buried under a heavy sherry – because there isn’t any heavy sherry. What I’m starting to find after a few minutes is rather a combination of strawberry jam and copper, as well as a little sandalwood. After five minutes, more camphory earth, typical in very old spirits. Mouth: miraculously lightly oaky, although there is some oak of course, but we’re rather geared towards old cognac, with some lovely mentholy peaches and ripe mirabelles, plus walnut wine and bits of pipe tobacco. Then rather raisins, of all kinds. Finish: as expected, it’s the finish that’s a little less ‘easy’, for there’s more oak (cinnamon and black tea), but it never loses its fruitiness. Starts to wander off in the aftertaste though, but that’s rather normal. A little rosemary. Comments: at times you would have thought the oak would take over, but that never quite happens. Great to taste this ‘against’ an old Cognac or even Armagnac. SGP:561 - 89 points.

Good, we’ve got many more, but we’ve tried exactly thirty different Bunnies in a row (not within the same session, mind you!) so maybe we could switch to another distillery next time. Yep, I think that’s what we’re going to do, stay tuned (and attuned)…

Check the index of all Bunnahabhain I've tasted so far