Whisky Extravaganza part 4: well-aged Islay ftw?

Much like I did a two part post on closed distilleries, I’ll be dedicating several posts on some well-aged Islay whiskies the next few weeks. In case you missed it: the very moment a bottle of 15 years (or older) whisky has the words ‘Islay Single Malt’ written on the label, the retail fairy  emerges out of thin air, waves her little wand and abracadabra, the retail price roughly doubles compared to what you would pay for any other whisky of a similar age. It’s a kinda magic, indeed!

Just last year, Kilchoman got everyone excited announcing  that their first ever 16 year old whisky would become available. The £200 asking price didn’t seem to bother those with the disposable income to splash the cash, as it sold out quickly enough.  Bruichladdich then announced the arrival of an 18 year old, bottled at 50% ABV for £150. Bunnahabhain, who since long have an 18 yo as part of their core range, have gradually upped the RRP for this (to be fair: absolutely lovely) whisky. When I took a deep dive into the rabbit hole of whisky a good decade ago, I remember it being available for around €100 (£85).  Today, it tends to be almost double that price as it is now on par with what Bruichladdich charges for their 18 yo.  And this is just completely ignoring the pricing policies applied by  Laphroaig (£160 for their 18 yo), Lagavulin (£80-£85 for the standard 16 yo, but double that for this year’s 12 yo special release!!) and Ardbeg (£200 and up for their 19 yo Traig Bhan). Simply put, a lot of Islay whiskies are cruising their way towards being worth their weight in gold. Or so they would like us to believe, anyway.

And yet…

While I’m by no means suggesting that there is anything here even remotely justifying these prices, I also feel  it’s a damn pity I’ve spent the first 300 odd words of this post yet again moaning about prices, as what we should be talking about is the quality of these whiskies, the enjoyment of nosing and sipping, the pleasure of tasting and sharing that comes with them. Which is exactly what I want to focus on, discussing 2 well-aged Islay whiskies from a distillery that has been ticking a lot of boxes among many enthusiasts and seems to  have become more or less a benchmark for other Islay distilleries in terms of consistency and  quality: Bruichladdich.

Bruichladdich as a distillery is arguably the quintessential example of the early 21st century whisky boom. If things looked grim at the end of the 20th century, mothballed and little in the way of future prospects, a quarter of a century onwards and Bruichladddich has, once again, established itself as one of the best known and revered distilleries from Scotland, often leading the way in terms of innovation and sustainability, focussing on locality and provenance. Love him or hate him, it was the entrepreneuring spirit and mindset of Mark Reynier that saved Bruichladdich at the turn of the millennium, very likely preventing it from being added to the list of ‘ghost distilleries’  in previous editions of the Malt Whisky Yearbooks. The team at Bruichladddich, initially  led by the living legend that is Jim McEwan and  now under leadership of the equally skilful Adam Hannett has worked hard to bring back the ‘Laddie name and fame. It’s little wonder that in the Dramface top 40 distillery list, it claims 3d place, all but tied for second place with that other illustrious Islay distillery Bunnahabhain. With their wide range of releases, from the unpeated ‘Ladddie brand  to  ‘heavily peated’ Port Charlotte to even ‘ridiculously peated’ Octomore, Bruichladdich has gained a dedicated fanbase who are keen, very keen even, on that complex and layered bready-grainy, farmy, slightly ‘funky’ character they so often bring to the table. In a way, you could argue that Bruichladdich is the most ‘Springbank reminiscent’ of  all the Islay distilleries, and I’m not just hinting at their flavour profile and spirit character here, with their strong focus on being embedded into and connected with their environment and local community.

Bruichladdich ‘The Laddie Twenty Two.’ American Oak Matured, 46% ABV, Unpeated. Discontinued but still available for about €250 (£210) and up.

The 22 yo expression was introduced back in 2012 in a series of  limited releases (all in all, 4  or 5 batches were released over the course of 2012 and 2013), so obviously all of what has been bottled for these releases comes from stock before the distillery closed down at the end of the 1990’s. Despite these releases being discontinued over a decade ago, there is still some of it about. The generous sole that is Nic Stilton-Masey, who is quite fond of these, was kind enough to provide both of the samples for today’s review.

Nose

Lots of ripe fruit notes – melons, orchard fruit, hints of grapes, a touch of citrus on the back of some treacle and an ever so delicate funky – umami element. It has a ‘fizzy’ vibe to it as well and underneath it all there’s a hint of linseed oil, leaning into a subtle vegetal note.

Palate

Immediately that fizzy - effervescent note is there , but it’s light and subtle. Sweet and sour and given time it’s the sweetness that prevails with all those yellow and white fruits from the nose. Again, something quite oily and waxy. The mouthfeel is quite full, and a  bit dry- woody, which towards the back of the palate is again countered by an umami touch.

Finish

Long, very long, even. Umami, drying and with a lingering salty and peppery echo.

Final thoughts

It’s a lovely drop  for sure. Layered, subtle,  and quite complex, but never loud or bursting with flavours trying to jump out of the glass as everything it offers (and it has plenty to offer), it does so in an almost understated way.  At the risk of sounding like a horrible snob, I’d say this is a whisky fit for the ‘added value seeker’. It’s likely not ging to be the talk of the evening if you were to put this in a line-up with more upfront flavour bombs, but this is the kind of whisky to just pour yourself on a quiet evening alone or in select company and just admire and enjoy each sip as you wind down and slow down.  A beauty!

Bruichladddich 19 yo (2004-2023) Ralfy.com  bottling to mark his 1000th review. Single first fill bourbon cask matured, 52.7% ABV, 233 bottles and sold out.

In case you missed it, part 2: Last year, Ralfy celebrated the milestone of reaching 1000 whisky reviews. To mark the occasion, he released several bottlings from some of his favourite whisky and rum distilleries and this 19 yo Bruichladdich was one of them.

Nose

That signature Laddie note – the mixture of yeast, grain and something farmy – is there, but it’s subtle and subdued. Equally subtle there’s citrus notes with oranges and even a hint of jaffa cakes. Wood and a very light acidic note, with a touch of wax and leather as well. Light, subtle and layered.

Palate

A fatty, oily arrival, with again that waxy touch. It’s woody, grainy and herbaceous-vegetal. Weirdly, but interestingly, these are countered by notes of manuka honey, making this significantly richer on the palate than the nose suggested. The density makes for a  medium full mouthfeel. Something salty and peppery towards the back.

Finish

Drying, gently minerally and medium long.

Final thoughts

Just like the Laddie 22, this bottling by Ralfie delivers  a subtle, layered and lovely complex dram. I tried both of these samples over the course of a weekend, and it struck me how I picked up new things on each occasion. There’s similarities to be found between the two – obviously, as they are of similar age and have been matured in the same type of wood. Both bring  that recognisable Bruichladdich character, but also, they are quite distinctive and different in their own right. If you’re looking for 20 year old -ish whiskies that will be big and bold and bursting with flavours, possibly you’ll need to look elsewhere, as both of these are  very much ‘slow down and take your time’ type of whiskies, as they are worthy of your undivided time and attention. If you find these for the right price, they’re  exactly the type of whiskies  I could be tempted by if I was looking to  self-indulge. Subtle, they may well be, but they are, in my book, also very, very good!

Newt week: more Islay, but older still and from a different distillery!