Bruichladdich Catch-up

Some serious catching up to do. Bruichladdich has been awfully prolific with its offerings - local barleys, wine finishings, Octomore, Port Charlottes, the new Laddie Ten...whew. And here I am, cradling my very own Laddie Ten...from the first edition in 2012/3.

This baby was bought in Taiwan last year, in that shop near Tamshui station. Really surprised to find a bottling that was already out-of-production. Guess sales move a little more slowly there.

So, this is the old Laddie Ten, when the distillery was finally rebooted and was celebrating the 10th anniversary of its resurrection with this ten year old offering. Reviews then were generally great, and I'm excited to join the bandwagon, 5 years later. This older bottling is at 46% abv, as compared to 50% in the newer release.

Bruichladdich 'Laddie Ten' (46% abv)

Colour - Between hay and gold. Rich yellow.

Nose - Oooh. Sharp. Minerals, lemons, a touch of smoke, some hay and a bit of...soil. This is not all sharp though, as there's some vanilla to give it a little roundness. Mm. Fairly obvious salt, though this doesn't become salty. You get what I mean?

Palate - A sharp attack on salt, lemons, orange zest. Refreshing, actually. The smell of the sea goes well with the sweetness in this - malty sweetness and a touch of honey about it. A fair amount of pepper. Salt and pepper then. That's my new favourite Kettle Chips flavour. Enjoyable sipper, this one.

Finish - Oak, pepper, a little drying. Still a little salty, and orange peel/lemon zest comes back again. Hmm. Maybe a touch of some herb...parsley?

Overall - I really should be comparing this to the new Laddie Ten, but I don't have a bottle of that yet. Glad I bought this, really. Only SGD60. Wow.

Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2008

Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2008 (50% abv)

I believe this is a travel retail exclusive, so thanks to JE for getting this on his way back from the Philippines. Fairly affordable at just over $100 at Duty Free. I think the bottle's really pretty too - clear, transparent glass, light gold liquid, and white text. If only the text was better organized - this feels a little messy, like they had too much information to cram into too small a space. I think the words could be cut down since the information on the bottle is replicated on the tin can.

But maybe that's the way to flaunt hipster street-cred: by having all the information about source materials on the bottle.

Colour - a really pretty light gold.

Nose - rather sharp. Lemons and light smoke, or maybe charred wood. Very fresh lemons, I should add. There's a bit of some barley, perhaps slightly toasted. This is not a big nose, but what it does, it does rather well and very precisely, especially with the fresh lemons and citrus. Some light salt - lighter than, say, a Talisker 10.

Palate - It's youth tells, with a strong alcoholic attack. After that, there's quite a bit more of those lemons from the nose. Some nuts as well - a little like peanut butter without added salt and preservatives. A little bit of spice build up - nutmeg and maybe tumeric? I found this slightly bitter though. Hmm. Is that some toasted barley? Didn't feel sweet or rich enough to be chocolate or ccocoa. But maybe the bitter on a slightly overdone espresso...

Finish - Again, sharp. Citrusy fruits that are more acidic than sweet, a continuation of the same spices. Some lingering notes of charred wood, together with the drying effect.

Overall - This is a very consistent and coherent whisky. The nose, palate and finish are very closely tied together, and presents a very clean precise profile. But I'm not sure I like this very much. It's good, but maybe not quite my favourite taste profile.

Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie

Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie Scottish Barley (50% abv) - This one was sipped at Harry's Bar at Novena Square, in the middle of a trying week at work. Heard good things about this from JE. Let's see how good it is.

Nose - The glass wasn't ideal for sniffing, so I'm probably not getting the most out of this. Lots of ripe apples. Almost caramelized, in fact. Vanilla. Some wood in there too. This is very nice. Almost like a good Speyside, until the whiffs of sea breeze rise up to meet you. This is an Islay's, after all. I think there's some peaches among the apples. Or maybe honey dew, or rock melon.

Palate - This is very nice! A smooth continuation of the nose, with an added spice kick, rather more like ginger than pepper. Hardly any alcohol burn, which is really pleasant for 50%. This is good stuff. Very good for an entry level NAS whisky, essentially. Smooth, sweet, fruity, well-balanced, low on alcohol burn. I'm impressed.

Finish - A touch of smoke. Unpeated, but this is slightly smoky. And I'm one of those who will say that there's a difference. A bit more of that ginger-like spice, and the oak lingers a bit. I think this should be considered a short finish, but there's enough in there to keep it interesting, and to keep the drinker continuously sipping.

Overall - Not a world beater, but there's space on every shelf for something so balanced and good at an entry level. Maybe I'll try to find a bottle, after I finish my Oban 14, which is developing very nice orange notes, after sitting half empty in the cupboard for a couple of months. Yum.