Review #130: Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2nd edition 2006/2013. 50% abv, OB, 15600 bottles

I like it how they put "unpeated" on the bottle ...

... as if it were necessary to specify all the things that something is not. They also tell you that this comes from Kynagarry Farm, which is on Islay, and of course they also tell you the variety of barley, which is the big attraction. The bottle doesn't mention that this is a travel retail special.

I'm glad that bere barley is being tried out -- it doesn't make sense to me, at any rate, to use high yield varieties if there's any improvement to be made by using older ones. The barley doesn't seem to be a big part of the price of a 6 or 7 year old $80 whisky. I hope some barrels manage to sit around for a while.

nose: powerful fruit and custard. There really seems to be a lot of American oak influence, actually. But there a nice fruit salad, some wildflowers, malt, and hay mixed in with the vanilla cream and cinnamon toast. The apples stand out most, along with some thyme and bees' balm. It's striking how floral this seems for such a young whisky.

palate: a little gristly and herbaceous, although with the same sweetness. I feel I can taste more of the bare bere whisky -- dates and nettles and pepper and gravel join the apples. It's a little dry and oaky, too -- are they sure this was only in barrel for 6 or so years?

finish: it bites a little, and then there's a wave of sweetness.


This is approachable, delicious stuff, but I'm not sure what I'm getting. Is this about the barley or the wood? I suppose it doesn't matter.

score: 87