
August 28, 2018

Some excellent peaty Bruichladdich

They come or came under several names, including Bruichladdich – the first batches by the previous owners were lightly peated in 2001 – or perhaps 2002, Lochindaal, Port Charlotte, Octomore…

Lochindaal 10 yo 2007/2018 (53.1%, Hidden Spirits, bourbon, cask ref #LH718, 235 bottles)

Hidden Spirits are a fairly recent Italian bottler who’ve already got a reputation. This might be the first time I’m trying one of their whiskies. Colour: pale gold. Nose: a tiny wee tad medicinal at first, with also touches of rubber, but gets then fresher and more maritime, with really a lot of kelp, and then a growing touch of fresh menthol that would come together with hints of fresh crushed almonds. And, maybe, a little maracuja. It started a tad simple but never stopped unfolding, almost like a peacock’s tail. With water: fresh, with a wee touch of raw wool. Mouth: very good! Punchy, really all on smoked limoncello at first, but those lemons would explode (what?) into various citrus fruits, tangerines, citrons, mandarins, blood oranges… That’s really lovely, and very fresh. With water: perfect, it swims extremely well. Almonds, oranges, smoke, clams, papayas. Finish: long, almondy, slightly waxy. Perfect citrus, rather ala old Laphroaig if that rings a bell to you. Comments: I’m not familiar with Lochindaal, but this is really very good. BTW, watch it, some indies used to call some Bowmores Lochindaal as well twenty years ago or so.
SGP:455 - 88 points.

Port Charlotte 2008/2017 (55.5%, Maltbarn, for Japan, red wine cask, 140 bottles)

Port Charlotte 2008/2017 (55.5%, Maltbarn, for Japan, red wine cask, 140 bottles)
Hold on, red wine on peat? Fasten your seat belts please… Colour: gold. Not pink! Not apricoty! Not roséed! Gold! Nose: what is this… It’s pretty nice, there’s some kind of feeling of smoked peonies and other red flowers, lilies, various herbal teas for sure (hawthorn), some cured ham (couldn’t say Parma or Bellota), perhaps a little iron (as in syrah), smoked strawberries… Well, you see the scene, I’m sure… With water: smoked mirabelles, perhaps, Sauternes rather than red wine, vin de paille… Mouth (neat): so very Bruichladdich! Only them dared doing this. Blood oranges, caraway, strawberries, Timut pepper, juniper, raspberries, more blood oranges, salted fruits… Strange, yet not bad, just, well, strange… With water: a tad easier and more ‘regular’, not something we would complain about, mind you. A wee sour note from the wood, though. Finish: rather long, on more slated fruits. Something sweet and sour. Comments: do they have this with natto over there in the land of the rising sun? Not totally my thing, but it’s far from being one of the worst red finishes if you ask me.
SGP:556 - 80 points.

I think we need another PC…

Port Charlotte 15 yo 2002/2018 (60.2%, Whisky Broker for Spirit of Islay, refill sherry hogshead, cask #1161, 254 bottles)

Port Charlotte 15 yo 2002/2018 (60.2%, Whisky Broker for Spirit of Islay, refill sherry hogshead, cask #1161, 254 bottles)
I think the good people behind this bottle know a thing or two about Islay and its whiskies, as I could observe for myself in the past.… Colour: gold. I mean, serious gold. Nose: I don’t know if the word ‘immaculate’ means much in the case of a sherry hogshead, but I would still use it. Lemon curd, custard, seawater, and this thing you should absolutely taste one day, Corsican citron liqueur. And then, a wide range of tinier aromas, cigarettes, quinces, wulong, Grisons meat, cigars, the obligatory old walnuts, dried apricots… Between us, I find this rather stunning. With water: it’s not that it changes much, it just gets a tad easier. Well done. Mouth (neat): exceptionally well balanced, which doesn’t happen very often with peat plus sherry. Of course we all know legendary hyper-sherried peaters, old Laphroaigs and such, but I wouldn’t say those are or were the norm. Anyway, this works a treat, with more walnuts, oranges, tobacco, and this luminous almost lemony smokiness that everyone loves. Light toffee too. With water: hurray! Splendid saltiness – you would almost believe someone added real salt – plus tobacco, dried fruits such as quinces and apricots, figs, a wee drop of Worcester sauce… Well all is well (oh, S.!) Finish: long, salty, with just a little more bitterness. Or even more tobacco and walnuts if you like. Comments: bang, serious stuff here! You could have called the anti-maltoporn brigade, they’re getting a bit rusty these days.
SGP:467 - 91 points.

Good, let’s have one Octomore and call this a session. These whiskies are great but they can be a tad tiring if you ask me…

Octomore 6 yo 2011/2018 (62%, Dram Fool, Islay Festival 2018 Release, bourbon barrel, cask # 4552, 253 bottles)

150 ppm peat in the barley, they say, so rather a muscle whisky. Colour: white wine. Nose: once again, the ppms don’t make the smokiness, and once again, we’ve had a Port Charlotte that was smokier. But this is clean, slightly fermentary/yeasty – which I enjoy - curiously bready, and pleasantly lemony. I also think the ABV’s a little high, and that it could do with a few drops of H2O. With water: fresh almonds, perhaps. Damp fabric… Mouth (neat): huge, extremely pungent. I used to know a Russian dentist, she was making her own crazy vodka out of stuff she was using in her practice. This Octomore’s even stronger. With water: good, we tamed it (barely, cough, cough)… It’s still raw and a tad spirity, but a nice saltiness comes out. Plus fusel oil, tincture of iodine, and raw peach eau-de-vie. Ah, artisanal peach eau-de-vie, that would strip the fur off a badger! Finish: long, salty, raw, spirity, extreme. A tad monstrous, I would say, this would make the loco-est mezcal distiller give up the trade. Comments: holy featherless crow, what was that?
SGP:447 - 84 points.

(Thank you Mike and Tom!)

Check the index of all peated Bruichladdich we've tasted so far