Port Charlotte MRC: 01
Distiller - Bruichladdich
Style – Single Malt
ABV – 59.22%
Age – 18yr (ish)
Casks – American Oak & French Wine Casks
Released – 2018
I was lucky enough to visit Bruichladdich's incredible distillery in 2018. The production is extremely old school, from having one of the 5 remaining original style tradition mash tuns, to the distillers doing everything by taste, this makes every batch that comes off the still slightly different all this combined with their huge variation of barrel styles gives them the tools to make some extremely complex drams. This, the first of Bruichladdich’s exploration series is a combination of 50% first fill American whisky, 50% second fill French wine cask then married together and the last year is spent in Bordeaux Cask. To the booze!
Nose:
Sweet red berries, raspberry, cherry, blackcurrant, all dipped in peat smoke, sticky caramel, toasted marshmallows, rich salty stone fruits, SO MUCH GOING ON!
Palette:
Initially heat from the ABV, quickly followed by big peat smoke leading the Palette then sweet dark fruits show up joined by some dark muscovado, then dry salty tobacco smoke
Finish:
Salty medicinal peat, charred peaches with lingering smoke, dried red berries and big cinnamon spice, slight hidden creamy vanilla
The complexity of this dram is immense, one of the best noses I’ve ever experienced from a dram. It has huge contrast initially on the palette, before leaning back into the rich fruit notes you pick up on the nose, while still giving the costal peat smoke you expect from Port Charlotte. Over all a beautiful dram that has so many reasons to be loved.