What they say

Celebrating 20 years of milestones with a series of our liquid firsts ,our Laddie Origins recipe draws unpeated single malt from 13 casks, across 12 vintages, 6 barley types and 9 different cask types. Hand-selected by Adam, this recipe contains our first ever taste of biodynamically grown barley, which in itself is a Scotch single malt first! Triple distilled Bruichladdich as well as casks containing some of our oldest barley-exploration spirits have also been selected for this commemorative liquid journey.

While we cannot divulge the year of distillation for each component due to Scotch law, we can share the epic liquid attributes in three broad categories:

SPIRIT FROM BRUICHLADDICH’S FIRST EVER:
BIODYNAMIC CROP
Spirit distilled from biodynamically grown barley by Richard Gantlett at Yatesbury Farm, 1st fill bourbon cask
X3–TRIPLE DISTILLATION
Unpeated Bruichladdich spirit from our first dally into triple distillation, 1st fill bourbon cask
YEAR OF BRUICHLADDICH, AFTER RESURRECTION
From our year of resurrection, some of the first Bruichladdich unpeated spirit to run from our freshly polished stills, 1st fill bourbon cask

OLDEST REMAIINING STOCKS O FBARLEY FIRSTS:
ORGANIC
Grown with minimal intervention by William Rose at Mid Coul, Inverness, 2nd fill bourbon cask
ISLAY BARLEY
From our Islay-growing farming partners, from the first year of this Islay barley project, 1st fill bourbon cask
ORKNEY GROWN BERE
The oldest stock remaining of our Orkney grown six-row ancient landrace, 1st fill bourbon cask
REGIONAL TRIALS FROM BLACK ISLE
From our single estate, northern contingency of our Regional Trials experiment, 1stfill bourbon cask

CASK EXPLORATIONS:
PEDRO XIMENEZ SHERRY FROM FERNANDO DEC ASTILLA
Commemorating the partnership with Jerez bodega FdC,1st fill PX sherry butt Scottish Mainland Barley
FRENCH RED WINE:PAUILLAC
From the year Remy Cointreau invested behind Bruichladdich, 2nd fill Hogshead from the Pauillac region of France, Scottish Mainland Barley
FRENCH EAUX DE VIE
From the Cognac region in France, 1st fill French Eaux de Vie cask, Scottish Mainland Organic Barley
FRENCH SWEET WHITE WINE:SAUTERNES
Islay grown barley distilled and then matured in a 1st fill Sauternes cask
FRENCH RED WINE:RIVESALTES
From the early years of our Islay barley project, matured in 1st fill Rivesaltes red wine cask
FRENCH WHITE WINE :CHENIN BLANC
Distilled from organically grown barley, matured in a 2nd fill bourbon to 2nd fill Chenin Blanc hogshead

TASTE NOTES

Colour – Polished copper.

Nose – The first approach to the glass is met with a combination of tropical fruit and malty barley sugar. Mango, cantaloupe melon come together with malty honeyed barley notes. Further exploration welcomes zesty citrus notes and hints of dried fruit combine with a salty, sandy minerality. Vanilla, salted caramel, toffee, golden syrup and dates, dried figs and ginger nut biscuits hint at the combination of cask types that have held this spirit. The deeper you delve, the more threads to the Bruichladdich spirit we find with gentle floral notes – lily, heather and orange blossom.

Taste – Powerful on the palate yet gloriously textured and round in the mouth. Another sip to calibrate and that minerality and citrus come forward, swiftly followed by pear drops, sherry fruit and barley straw. The oak and the grain’s sweetness combine beautifully, sweet vanilla, barley sugar, and fudge. The fruit ranges from ripe pears, apricot jam, grilled pineapple and warm figs and dates. There is huge depth on the palate, and a splash of water releases the citrus further along with that earthy mineral tone. The addition of water is the key here to release the floral notes alongside the more delicate sea breeze – that salty tang.

Finish – The finish is all about the balance of the cask – toasted oak spice, chocolate, vanilla, dried sherry fruit – and the spirit which, due to the range of ages of whisky in this cuvée, bring a combination of citrus, ripe pear, gooseberry through to apricot, melon, mango and coconut.

Mood – This whisky is a reflection of the past 20 years of exploration. The milestones of discovery. It is an inspiration to look to the future and continue to challenge and question and pass on an example to the next generation so they too can uphold our values and feel equally proud.

What I say

Celebrating Bruichladdich day on 31st may during Feis Ile 2021 . Firstly with a Masterclass by Adam Hannett tasting through some of the example casks used to make up Bruichladdich origins and later tasting the final marriage itself, the Bruichladdich 2021 Feis Ile bottling: Laddie Origins

• ABV 57.5%
• Age NAS
• Bottler Official
• Bottling origins
• Cask Mixed
• Category Single Malt Whisky
• Cost £150
• Origin Bruichladdich Distillery
• Outturn 3000
• Region Islay
• Released 2021
• Vintage Undeclared

My tasting notes:

• Appearance Sauternes gold (8/20), medium tears and tapered legs.
• Nose Cereal barley malt, heather honey, fruity, apple, cherry, pear, hints of raisin and blackcurrant, melon, salted caramel sauce and vanilla creme brulee, floral honeysuckle and elderflower and fresh sea breeze minerality.
• Taste Medium-bodied, oily, rich, fruity and a touch spiced, raisins, apple strudel, pineapple, ginger and orange marmalade, dried fig jam, Jamaican ginger cake, with a hint of lemon curd and peach and apricot jam, heather honey, toasted oak wood chips, apple blossom and mineralic sea salt.
• Finish Long, sweet and zesty, candied peel, becomes a touch drying and woody.
• Overall A rather complex and full expression encompassing all of Bruichladdich from rich cereal barley, through a veritable cocktail of fruit with a small wine-tour intermission including warehouses full of oak casks and ending with that characteristic sea spray. A great summary of the last 20 years at Bruichladdich!

Score 88/100

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