BRUICHLADDICH LIVE TASTING - November 20-22, 2009

[Ganga]

Welcome to the Bruichladdich Live Forum Tasting

The Whiskies


Waves
Peat
Rocks
Twelve
Fifteen
Twenty
Links Series

And any other Bruichladdichs you may have...

Date and Time


Friday 20th November 7:00pm GMT - Sunday 22nd November


Start time - 7:00pm GMT

About...
For those of you who do not know what these are about, they run for generally 12+ hours and we all sit down (at various times) to taste a range of whiskies and share our notes and comments on the forum. Have a look in the Live Tasting forum for past events.

They are a great way to meet people on the forum, chat about your experiences and learn something new about the whiskies you have, and we all end up having a good time.

Please feel free to join in and post any comments or tasting notes you have. Tasting notes can be added using the Tasting Note tab on the postings page. (Note, the Age field on the tasting must be a number such as 7,9,10,18)

We look forward to seeing you on Friday evening...

[pkt77242]

I will either be on later tonight or Sunday night.
Anyone else going to be on tonight?

Sean

[Holysinner]

I opened my only 'Laddie (3D3), even though I knew my tastebuds were in poor shape. I expect I'll write it up and post notes Sunday.

[pkt77242]

I am going to try my Laddies tonight but might have to stop if the baby won't sleep. First up is Rocks

Bruichladdich Rocks
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : -
Nose : A fair amount of salt, hints of peat and strawberry jam. Also some citrus. Hint of wood smoke. Palate : Salt and a hint of the strawberry jam. Salted lemon? Finish : Very salty. slight banana. Comment : Was there by any chance multiple editions of the "Rocks" as this tastes nothing like all the reviews I have read. Colour : - Score : 0
Age : 0 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 46% Bottler : -	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : None Ice : None Glass : - Notes : -
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

Sean

[pkt77242]

Next up

Bruichladdich Links 14yo St Andrews
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : Links
Nose : cooked red fruits. rather sweet smelling. raisins. Maybe Raisin Bran cereal? almost no salt or peat. Palate : Spicy cherry, rhubarb and the bran returns. Some salt shows up but no peat. Some cedar and cinnamon. Finish : Medium length and the salt really shows up. Salted melon and strawberries. Comment : Very nice. I could enjoy a full bottle of this. Makes me wonder how the other Links compare? Colour : - Score : 0
Age : 14 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 46% Bottler : -	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : None Ice : None Glass : - Notes : -
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

[pkt77242]

Next up

Bruichladdich 3D3 Norrie Campbell
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : 3D3 Norrie Campbell
Nose : Salted peat, oatmeal, and some citrus. Palate : lots of woodsmoke, peat and salt. just a hint of lemon and melon. Salted fish? Finish : Medium length finish that is salty and has a faint metallic taste. Comment : Much more like Laga, Laph or Ardbeg but distinctly it's own. Colour : - Score : 0
Age : 0 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 46% Bottler : -	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : None Ice : None Glass : - Notes : -
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

Sean

[pkt77242]

That is it for tonight. Either Saturday or Sunday I will be back to taste the 15yo 1st ed. and the 15yo 2nd ed.

Sean

[mikeymad]

Thanks for the notes Sean... I have some various things around here I could try... will have to dig them out and maybe hit Saturday a little bit... will see how it goes.

Cheers,

[Ganga]

I'm busy until about 9 PM tonight. Will try some Laddies after that.

[Wave]

Oh sh....! I forgot all about this! I have a few Laddies to taste (10yo, 3D3, '89 Cask Strength and maybe a couple more) but it won't be until after I get off work tonight at 11pm. I'm also whipping up a batch of my pasta an garlic sausage spaghetti sauce tonight for the crew so hopefully I can tame my tastebuds before I come home.


Cheers!

[Spirit of Islay]

Good Evening from the Toon !
See how many Laddies we can get through , let's start with.....
Expression - Bruichladdich 10yo First Edition
Age - 10yo
ABV - 46%
Colour - Pale Gold
Nose - Quite Lemony at first , loads of green Fruits (apples , pears , grapes) , very fresh .
Palate - Again very fresh across the palate , lemon Drizzle cake , a bit fudgy .
Finish - Long , warm and Lemony .
Comments - 10yo First Edition , Vatted from 60% Bourbon / 40% Refill sherry Casks . A lovely laddie that was , deservedly so , one of the first releases .

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich 12yo Second Edition
Age - 12yo
ABV - 46%
Colour - Golden Syrup
Nose - Keiller's Butterscotch at first , then lemon , green fruits and vanilla .
Palate - A lot of sweetness , again a touch of Butterscotch , Apples and Pears . Quite oily across the palate and vanilla .
Finish - Long , Sweet (Butterscotch) and also a bit malty .
Comments - Laddie as it should be ! A lovely , pure , malt from 100% Ex-Bourbon Casks .

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich Fifteen (1st Edition)
Age - 15yo
ABV - 46%
Colour - Polished Copper
Nose - The First one with a hint of sherry on the nose , in fact more than a hint , Freshly cut meadows as well , and again Keillers butterscotch .
Palate - a nice balance of sherry and the usual Laddie fudgy sweetness and green fruits .
Finish - An extremely satisfying mixture of Butterscotch sweetness and sherry dryness .
Comments - Vatted from 85% Bourbon / 15% 1st fill Oloroso Casks . A very balanced Laddie , the sherry has a nice but not overpowering effect on the bottling .

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich Twenty (First Edition)
Age - 20yo
ABV - 46%
Colour - Barley Sugar
Nose - Freshly cut meadows , Honey , green fruits (Apples and pears ) , almost Lindisfarne mead-y
Palate - Dry maltiness , vanilla , lemon , a lovely thick mouthfeel .
Finish - a long , dry , smooth , fudgy finish .
Comments - 100% Ex-Bourbon Casks (aah remember the good ol' days.....) , talking of Lindisfarne , their 1972 Dingly Dell album is a good accompaniment to Laddie.....the old Hippy strikes again.....

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich Legacy Series One
Year - 1966 (an extremely good year for Whisky and Football....)
Age - 36yo
ABV - 40.6%
Cask / Bottle No. - American Oak / 64
Colour - Burnished Gold
Nose - Could be mistaken for a well aged bourbon , bags of vanilla , almost charred wood , slight honeyness , Digestive Biscuits .
Palate - Lovely luxurious mouthfeel , Vanilla , sweet , again could be mistaken for a well aged Bourbon .
Finish - Long and Bourbonesque , Vanilla and oak , very satisfying .
Comments - Bottled Sept 2002 , 100% Bourbon casks , a really nice laddie , nicely balanced and has survived well in the casks .

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich Sinnsear "Forefathers"
Year - 1988
Age - 15yo
ABV - 50%
Cask / Bottle No. - Ex bourbon / 733 of 1000
Colour - Straw
Nose - Very Fresh , green fruits , almost Lowlanderish with it's fresh cut meadows and lemon .
Palate - Very smooth across the palate , again loads of lemon , green fruits and a touch of Vanilla and fudge .
Finish - very long and citricy .
Comments - Distilled 11/02/1988 , bottled 22/11/2003 , a very clean malt , almost the perfect Laddie !

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich 2001 The Resurrection Dram
Year - 2001
Age - 7yo
ABV - 46%
Cask / Bottle No. - /12252 of 24000
Colour - Light Gold
Nose - Soft but with a slight Prickle .Very (Keillers) Butterscotch with a lemon citric Backdrop . Eventually we get the familiar laddie notes of green fruits , fudge and a slight creaminess .
Palate - Still a bit young on the palate but full of potential , again lemon citric , green fruits but then a slight pepperiness (!) .
Finish - Long and Butterscotch , again with that twist of Lemon , still a bit young but there's also a slight peppery/peatiness to it (never noticed that before !) .
Comments - The Very first release from the post take over stock of ordinary Bruichladdich , This is going to be a killer malt in it's teens , good stuff .

[pkt77242]

Nice notes Gordon. You have some very yummy Laddies.

Sean

[Spirit of Islay]

Expression - Bruichladdich 21
Year -
Age - 21yo
ABV - 46%
Cask / Bottle No. - Oloroso /
Colour - Deep Amber going on Mahogany
Nose - straight away you get the typical sherry notes...... a very relaxed Christmas Cake , dried fruits , spices , Dark Chocolate . When i first tried this it took a while to open up , now it's just full on straight away !
Palate - A perfect oloroso palate , no sherry nasties lurking just a dry , oloroso taste and the usual sherry "Christmas Cake" tastes , is that a slight hint of the laddie Green fruits ? .
Finish - Long , Dry , very warming , Apricot Marmalade and Marzipan . Also Orange .
Comments - Very oily in the glass , not a sign of anything sulphury , extremely well balanced . This one doesn't seem to have went down well with the general whisky buying public which is a shame as it's a very good sherried Laddie .

[Spirit of Islay]

Thanks Sean , it was a hard job choosing which one's to taste tonight , Laddie have released some very good Malts , just a shame they've went overboard with the finishing in wine casks.......

[Spirit of Islay]

Ok the last one of the night for me , Technically not a Laddie but it did come of their stills , a very special malt to me.......

Expression - Port Charlotte 4yo
Year - 2001
Age - 4yo
ABV - 61.4%
Cask / Bottle No. - Bloodtub R23 / 23 of 39
Colour - Topaz
Nose - The maltiness strikes you first , a strong dryness (the sherry) , a lingering peatiness almost earthy , there's also a slight dark fruitiness to it .
Palate - Again very dry , very malty , the peat eventually comes flooding in . A peaty smokiness covers the palate after a while......
Finish - Long , dry , peaty , bitter dark chocolate , goes on and on and on.......
Comments - Distilled 12th June 2001 , Bottled 25th November 2005 . Ok so this is my first Baby , but i still think it's the best PC i've tasted to date , Jim (Murray) gave it a 96 in his Whisky Bible , i think it deserved at least 97 LOL! It is an incredible Malt and i'm glad i bought the bloodtub back in 2001 !

[pkt77242]

I am getting my last 2 Laddies ready to go.

First up is the Laddie 15yo 1st ed.

Sean

[pkt77242]

Bruichladdich 15yo 1st ed.
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : -
Nose : porridgy, salt and pears. Maybe some green apples and a hint of smoke. Definitely some butterscotch. Palate : butterscotch and vanilla. Salted pears. Finish : Medium long finish on vanilla salted pears. Comment : A very nice Laddie. Colour : - Score : 0
Age : 15 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 46% Bottler : -	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : None Ice : None Glass : - Notes : -
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

Sean

[mikeymad]

Don't have much of the standard things. But I was able to find four open/samples.

hmmm first to try...

Bruichladdich 6yo (46%, Original Bottling, "First Born", bottle 43/340)

Bottled for K&L....

Cheers,

[Ganga]

Sweet lineup (double entendre intended) there G. Thanks for the brilliant set of notes! Two coming from me tonight: "First Born" and Legacy V.

[pkt77242]

Bruichladdich 15yo 2nd edition
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : -
Nose : cantaloupe, honeydew, and banana. very tropical. Also some fresh baked bread and a hint of salt. Palate : Very sweet, bananas, and melons. Also a hint of mango and honey. Just a pinch of salt and vanilla. Finish : Medium finish on salt and banana. Comment : This is finished in Chateau d'Yquem casks, which is a Sauternes wine. Very sweet. Colour : - Score : 0
Age : 15 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 46% Bottler : -	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : None Ice : None Glass : - Notes : -
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

Sean

[pkt77242]

Ganga and Mikey, it is good to see you two on. I will hang around for a bit even though I am done with my Laddies. I think I might crack open my Caol Ila DE (has it made it to California yet, as I was surprised to see it here) and compare it to the Bruichladdich 15yo 2nd edition.

Sean

[Ganga]

Bruichladdich
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : First Born
Nose : pomegranate, bisquit sans gravy, candied nuts, wisps of butterscotch, dried apricot Palate : anthracite, tannic, green apples, burning peat logs, bandaids Finish : moderate, coal, sea and white pepper Comment : This bottle has been open for the better part of two years. The wine is now merely an element to the whisky rather than being dominant. Very nice Colour : orangy gold Score : 0
Age : 5 Years Old Vintage : 2001 ABV : 46% Bottler : Bruichladdich	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : no Ice : no Glass : Glencairn Notes : 47/340, cask 522, First Born 92301 for K&L Wines, Ridge Zinfandel finish
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

[Ganga]

Haven't seen the CI DE down here yet. Good to have a third wheel for a little bit.

[Ganga]

Bruichladdich Legacy V
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : Legacy V
Nose : minty malt, herbal-anise, pecan paste Palate : mint and anise, Cinnabon Finish : long, mellow, fresh crushed mint Comment : - Colour : copper gold Score : 0
Age : 33 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 40.9% Bottler : Bruichladdich	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : no Ice : no Glass : Glencairn Notes : 420/1690
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

[pkt77242]

Bruichladdich Legacy V
Brand : Bruichladdich Expression : Legacy V
Nose : minty malt, herbal-anise, pecan paste Palate : mint and anise, Cinnabon Finish : long, mellow, fresh crushed mint Comment : - Colour : copper gold Score : 0
Age : 33 Years Old Vintage : 0 ABV : 40.9% Bottler : Bruichladdich	Type : Single Malt Region : Islay Water : no Ice : no Glass : Glencairn Notes : 420/1690
More tasting notes by None Please do not reproduce or copy this tasting note without permission.

That sounds amazing especially the part about Cinnabon. Let me wipe the drool off my face.

Sean

[Ganga]

Sean, if you can believe it the whisky actually is tasting more interesting now. The minty characteristics didn't really show up that much if at all in previous experiences. Cinnabon - the sweetness of the sugars, cinnamon and the roll dough!

[Ganga]

Just not a Laddies man then.

[mikeymad]

oops it is a 5yo...

Bruichladdich 5yo (46%, Original Bottling, "First Born", bottle 43/340, Cask # 522, finished in Ridge Zinfandel wine cask)

This was a bottle of Bruichladdich that was made for K&L Wine store in Redwood City... It was all new distillation and was the first release in the US (maybe the world) of a Bruichladdich all made by Jim...

On first nose this slightly orange-amber colored whisky comes off with notes of dried fruits, and almost like orange candied gels. It really does not smell spirity at all for a 5yo.

Having a sample there is a touch of spirity that plays across the palate, followed quickly by a touch of malt followed very quickly by a large amount of fruit cocktail that sits around for a while and then slowly dissipates as the malty sweetness comes back... nice little first taste.

Working it over more the second time... the nose is more intense. Same profile just everything pumped up. Holding the whisky on the palate a little more seems to bring out a little bit of peat, more malt, and the spice of the wine seems to be coming in on the mid palate. Some dark fruit and pepper (maybe what I am mistaking as some peat)...

The dram finishes pretty fast with a medium to short finish and sit about mid to front palate (about what you would expect for the age). There is just a touch of the malt and wine in the very end... all very light.

Interesting dram in most respects. I have enjoyed the first bottle and seeing it change over time as the wine notes get more integrated... I have one more sealed bottle for a later time.

Cheers,

[pkt77242]

Sean, if you can believe it the whisky actually is tasting more interesting now. The minty characteristics didn't really show up that much if at all in previous experiences. Cinnabon - the sweetness of the sugars, cinnamon and the roll dough!

Ganga, thank you for making me jealous. I will now have to pour some Laga 12 2009 to get over it.

Sean