Bruichladdich 18 year old Second Edition
Review by Bruichladdich
- Colour
Gilded Lily/Lemon Honey.
- Nose
The aromatics open on soft, ripe, honeydew melon, papaya & passion fruit. It’s a fascinating fusion and together they provide the foundation for the strong mellow oak notes which bring character and power to the spirit. On the third pass the lemon and honey citrus flavours emerge, adding a defining clarity to the experience.
- Palate
The freshness of the fruit caress the olfactory senses and provides the foundation for the biscuity sweetness of malted spring barley. What crowns this classic is the time spent in Jurancon casks which has added a sophistication and style to the shy sensitive side of this Island beauty. The flavours of sultanas and super sweet raisins add the magic that makes this malt truly unique.
- Finish
There is a refinement, a delicacy and a connoisseurship in the heart of this spirit that will appeal to those who seek new experiences, exciting and exclusive bottlings all designed and hand made with passion and pride.
- Conclusion
Voluptuous and absolutely flawless, the balance and texture of this beautiful “A List” spirit is unbelievable. It’s total cruise control in a glass.
- Note
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The 18 Year Old 2nd Edition continues the sweet wine cask influence of the 1st Edition’s pioneering Bourbon/Willi Opitz bottling. Here we have again fused American oak with the more flavoursome French oak - but this time the casks contained the rare, sweet wine from Jurancon in the Pyrennean foothills of south-west France. Together they make another extraordinarily mellow and profound bottling.
Clos Urolat is a pseudo-organic vineyard owned by the appropriately "bear-like” rugby fanatic Charles Hours. His decadently rich wine is made from the exotically-named Petit Manseng grape - benefitting from an unusual high altitude micro-climate, where the warm sea breeze and oceanic climate allows the ledgendary Noble Rot to occur, when the grapes overripen taking on rich, raisin-like characteristics.