Recent posts have included a book about the modern rebirth of Bruichladdich and a description of the original Port Charlotte distillery which was going to be rebuilt and then wasn’t. With that in mind it seems only right to look at a release from the modern Port Charlotte brand coming out of the Bruichladdich distillery.

The 10 year old 2nd edition was released in 2016 and I have only recently opened the bottle. This is the second bottle I bought of this whisky though with the first being stolen from me when my house was broken into a few years back. My car was also stolen during the break in and this 10 year old along with a Abbey Whisky Kilchoman release contributed greatly to the safe(ish) return of my car. The occupants being unable to hold their drink and drive for every long before crashing into a grassy clearing and staggering off saved me from ruin.

The Dram

Like all releases from Bruichladdich the whisky is natural colour, non-chill filtered, matured entirely on Islay in their warehouses and bottled onsite as well. The bottling strength is 50% ABV with the spring from Octomore Farm used to dilute the whisky down to this strength.

These all seem to be gone now but there is a new on-going release version which is actually cheaper than the £65 I paid for this “limited edition” bottle. The numbers of bottles from this edition release was 18,000 units from a mixture of first fill ex-Bourbon, Sherry, Tempranillo and french wine casks.

Tasting Notes

Colour – golden

Nose – coastal and salty with a strong pointed stewed fruit note which dominates. At this point down the bottle I wouldn’t say it was peaty on the nose.

Palate – plenty heathery peaty notes here though. More of the sherry notes which I would place as Rivesaltes having had a number of these Rivesaltes cask on warehouse tours or single cask bottles.

Finish – A long lingering smoky finish. Coffee coca and more brine solution.

Final Thoughts

I really like Bruichladdich and I think actually the Port Charlotte brand is the best compromise on price and interest. This particular version though I didn’t enjoy as much as other ones. I will be interested to try the newer 10 year old to compare as the composition looks similar from what is printed online.