This month, our merry malt explorers were treated to a unique trio of Islay whiskies – familiar distilleries with unfamiliar expressions.
We followed our standard blind tasting format, only revealing the whisky after sniffing, sipping, swishing, speculating and more.
1st up was a Bruichladdich experiment with organic barley.
Next? Read on…
Bunnahabhain Eirigh Na Greine (Whisky Lady)
Bunnahabhain Eirigh Na Greine (Morning Sky), batch no 1, 46.3%
- Colour – Rose gold
- Nose – 1st impression is very sweet, but seems like it is hiding, a medicinal element with one exclaiming “I would love to have a headache with this!” Seems a bit oily, smells like fermented rice or dosa paste, after more airing the nose settles on being sweet, sweet and sweet as in candy sweet
- Taste – Quite a light whisky, a bit shallow then surprises with something coming from behind – like winey grape peel or chewing on a jasmine or rose petal, sweet like gulkand (rose petal jam), a bit of sea salt
- Finish – There but…
- Water – The oiliness goes away, simply flattened the whisky and wouldn’t recommend adding
- Overall impression – Not so complex, no peat, an easy drinking whisky that remains at a ‘surface’ level with the flirtatious wine / rose petal an interesting element
Speculation ran rife with this one. Seemed as thought it likely had a sherry or wine finish. Some thought the age was at most a 10 year, most opting for NAS. Then the distillery guessing game began, rapidly narrowing to non-peated Islay with Bunnahabhain leading the pack!
With the unveiling, our host for the evening was maha impressed with Bunnahabhain guesses and the winey / rose element.
Bunnahabhain (Whisky Lady)
- Eirigh Na Greine (pronounced Ae-ree ne gray-nyuh and meaning ‘Morning Sky’ in Gaelic) is an alluringly complex small-batch single malt Scotch whisky containing a significant proportion of high-quality ex-red wine cask-matured Bunnahabhain whiskies of various ages.
- Our Master Distiller has perfected the recipe to ensure that Bunnahabhain’s signature taste, which includes roasted nuts and fruits with hints of sea salt and smoke, is further enhanced by sweet, rich and spicy aromas imparted by the Italian and French red wine influence.
- The influence of the ex-red wine matured whiskies results in a multifaceted tasting experience, with luscious notes of rich fruits, boiled sweets and spicy effervescence.
Official tasting notes:
- Appearance – Pale bronze
- Nose – Rich dried fruits, toasted hazelnuts with hints of mouth-watering candy sweets, butterscotch, marzipan and rose syrup
- Palate – Lively and satisfyingly smooth. A tantalising fusion of ripe cherries, prunes, apricots, orange marmalade with subtle hints of rich cocoa and spicy oakiness
- Finish – Temptingly warm, nutty and spicy
Other whiskies sampled in our August session included:
- Bruichladdich ‘The Organic Scottish Barley’ NAS 50%
- Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice – Caol Ila 1997 43%
August Islay Tasting Trio (Whisky Lady)
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