Celebrating the resurrection of Bruichladdich
I once heard it said that Bruichladdich Day is the one Feis Ile day the Ileach themselves enjoy the most. I can certainly understand why, based on the two visits I did to this day while celebrating Feis Ile, the last time being exactly ten years ago. There was lots of food, a big crowd enjoying the passionate music, and of course an overwhelming offering of good drinks. Not only whisky, but also the better G&T. Today, we are going to celebrate the lifeline that got to Bruichladdich in the year 2000. Back then, Murray McDavid bought the distillery and brought it back to life. Larger than life, I could say. What we have seen coming from the stills, from the warehouses, from the minds of the creative workforce at Bruichladdich, is an almost unparalleled story in Scotch whisky history. And we found just the dram to commemorate that the resurrection took place over 25 years ago. Slainte mhath! (And of course, we because we can, also taste something else.)
Bruichladdich – The Resurrection Dram, vintage 2001, bottled at 46 % abv
First things first: There are two expressions, one bottled in 2008 (the one we are tasting) and one bottled in 2009. Distilled on 23 October 2001 just a couple of months after the stills were started up again. Matured in bourbon barrels and bottled in a batch of 24.000.
Upon Sipping: Rumour has it that some peated wash “accidentally” was mixed with the regular Bruichladdich wash. If so, it must have been a subtle amount, because on the nose I pick up the classic Laddie influences, like minerals, sunflower oil, dry yellow grass and a balanced, almost subdued vanilla. This friendly character continues its journey on the palate, where it is nice and creamy, with subtle wood notes but mostly thick distillery DNA. The wood impact is modest and, granted, there might be a whiff of smoke, but not terribly peaty. Really quite a syrupy mouthfeel compared to the regular 10 years old, that seems more frivolous. Despite its young age, this Bruichladdich Resurrection Dram carries quite some weight and complexity. I dare say, with some time in the glass, it does grow more maritime in nature, but what do you expect from an island dram? The aroma is more reminiscent of a farmyard now, and the absence of anything fruity is a clear indication of the more barren parts of Islay. With a drop of water, we get aniseed on the nose. The taste remains more or less the same, with some hints of tea leaves added. The vanilla became more thick and yes, there is undeniably peat involved here. Lovely bitter wood notes on the finish.
Word to the Wise: One for the history books! There was also a Renaissance expression bottled for Feis Ile 2011. We would love to get our hands on that one day! But this very first release from Bruichladdich made under the Saviour Regime, is quite impressive! A very naked and raw island whisky here, with enough tinges of Islay to make it truly authentic.
Score: 87 points.
Bruichladdich 2001, Micro Provenance, bottled at 55,7 % abv
First things first: Another 2001, this time distilled on 14 November 2001. It was especially bottled for the International Whisky Festival in Leiden, The Netherlands. Only 250 bottles were filled on 26 October 2010. This Bruichladdich is 8 years old, almost 9 of course, and got a finish on a rum cask. For Cask Evolution Exploration, this was cask # 012.
Upon Sipping: Quite an exciting bottling for a whisky festival, lucky visitors back then! In contrast with the Bruichladdich Resurrection Dram, this IS very fruity on the nose. Tropical stuff like mango but also something more dry instead of juicy, like banana. Underneath a mineral, maritime touch, with some lemons, oyster water and scallop sauce. The fruity elements calm down after a while, making the whisky more balanced in appearance. The taste has this typical feel of something good being enveloped in something unnatural. Here is where the rum clashes with the original bourbon maturation. Towards the finish, this causes a creamy, cardboardy flavour, or perhaps… a scoop of vanilla ice cream that fell on a tarry road that you still decided to pick up and finish. You know you shouldn’t have. With water, we release more minerals, which is a very good thing. The taste is more or less unaffected. There is a lack of integration that bothers me.
Word to the Wise: Not the best ever finish, even though the character of Bruichladdich is well preserved. Rum can put a stamp on whisky that does not always work to my satisfaction. This was a nice experiment, but it has some flaws.
Score: 82 points.