Bruichladdich Ancien Regime 1998

Bruichladdich Ancien Regime 1998 vintage Islay single malt Scotch whisky. Matured in ex-bourbon casks, limited release of 2,500 bottles.

Bruichladdich

Bruichladdich Distillery was established in 1881 on the Rhinns peninsular on the island of Islay close by the sandy bays of Loch Indaal. Re-opened in 2001 with much of the original Victorian equipment restored to working order. The first release of Bruichladdich’s new whisky was the highly acclaimed PC5, the first release in the limited Port Charlotte range. Also producing very highly peated Octamore, Organic using Islay grown barley, and triple and quadruple distilled single malts. The Bruichladdich distillery visitor centre offers distillery tours including the bottling hall and the distillery participates in Feis Ile, the annual Islay Whisky Festival.

Nose: Opens on peach melba with a sprinkling of dried coconut followed by more soft fruit notes, jelly beans. It’s an olfactory fruit bomb. As it continues, sugar almonds and orange and lemon syrupy sweet aromas join the party. Once the fruit settles down a little, the superb notes and flavours of American oak add their vanilla fudge and toasted hazelnut flavours with a dash of bourbon from a previous life.

Taste: It’s the mellowness of this oak that creates a bubble in which all the aromatics and taste sensations are held lovingly. After approximately 10 minutes a note of soft banana on toasted rye bread comes on board and the bubble starts to rise, which is does serenely, and is caught in the slipstream of a warm Westerly sea breeze which uplifts the notes of the wild flowers and heather covered hills as they rise from the glass.

Finish: Distilled essence! This Champagne of Islay will stimulate and captivate not only your senses, but your heart. Enjoy the flight; you have just been upgra