Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2008 Islay Grown: Dunlossit Estate

I added a bottle of this to an international order back in the spring and I decided to open it because I have too many peated whiskies open at the moment, so I need something to balance things out. Bruichladdich Bere Barley 2008 is another release lauding the use of locally grown six-row barley from the Dunlossit Farm on Northern Islay. These guys love to advertise “terroir”, and this one fits the bill. Bere Barley is 9 year old whisky that was aged in ex-white oak casks and bottled at 50% abv. It’s pale yellow, oily and makes some very skinny legs in the taster. It’s non-chill filtered and has no added color. The nose was pretty closed off initially. I mean I literally got nothing for the first 5-10 minutes. Vanilla and sweet corn eventually came through, albeit still quite lightly. The oak casks are probably the most prominent aroma, even if you add a splash of water- which I did on subsequent tastings. The palate only really carried the sweet, candied corn as it’s one note swan song. There was some alcohol and ABV presence, but the sweetness carried the day- even with water. It was slightly hot, harsh and to the point. The finish was medium to long, again focusing on the corn. The mouthfeel stayed dry from beginning to end. A little water did wash some of the harshness out, but it only diluted the dram even more. Overall, this was a boring dram. If you’re an American bourbon fan or a enthusiastic corn whiskey drinker then this may hit your wheelhouse. The question is: why would you buy an $88 single malt to experience Scottish moonshine? The simple answer is that you wouldn’t. This malt is only for diehard Bruichladdich fans. I like their core stuff, but this is one I should’ve left out of my online cart. 2.75-3 stars and not worth the scratch. Look elsewhere.

This is a weird one for me. I have a 200ml taster bottle from a sample pack that came with an Islay Barley and an Organic. As soon as I poured this one, the initial smell I was picking up in the nose was a big, dusty bag of grains. It honestly smelled like if you’ve ever opened up a burlap sack of barley or lentils. It took me right back to the farm. Dusty and earthy. Initially, on the palate that earthiness came through strong. It reminded me, dare I say, of dry manure in a field; but not in a gross way...but also not in an enjoyable way. More of a, “Huh...never tasted that before.” I scoured the internet for a review that had the same tasting notes, but couldn’t find one, so it may be just me. After 10 minutes in the glass, those dusty, farmyard notes fade dramatically to the background and a sweeter dram emerges. Barley sugar and orange in the nose. Little bit of dust remains. On the palate, sweet citrus, some cereals, and custard. Like others have mentioned; it’s a bit rough around the edges. It does do a pretty good job of changing with time in the glass, but, I’d take the Classic Laddie over this. I’m a big Bruichladdich fanboy, but I’m glad that I have a 200ml sample bottle of this and didn’t sink $100 CAD into a full bottle. I’m glad I tried it; to me, it was engaging because of those weird farmyard notes, but it’s not a Bruichladdich limited release that I will miss when it’s gone like the Laddie 10 or the Organic 2003. I’d still say to grab a dram if you can. 3.5 stars - 84/100 Edit: after a few weeks in the bottle it really came into its own. Nice complexity now. Rough edges gone. Changes character so much with time in the glass. 4 stars 88/100

Outside of Octomore, I’ve never had a Bruichladdich. Strange that after almost 300 whiskies not one has been part of the standard lineup of this Islay distillery. Well tonight I remedied that thanks to @LeeEvolved and his generosity. Bere Barley is all about locally grown Islay barley. Bottled at 50% ABV and is non chill filtered and natural color of pale straw. The nose is very malty and cereal forward. Lemon citrus, which I had noticed in so many single malts a few months ago and then suddenly it was gone, and now back again. Vanilla cream, ginger and nutmeg. Light oak, a distant coffee note and light toffee. Not much complexity to be found here. After adding a generous amount of water...nothing. Not much change at all except maybe a little creamier and perhaps some lime leaves. The palate is rather harsh with lots of heat that builds quickly. Malty, oak, lemon and a light apple note. Harsh overall. With water much of the heat still remains and nothing new comes forth. A medium bodied mouthfeel that is lightly oily and mouth coating with heat. The finish is medium length with heat, cereal malt and light oak. Well this was quite the boring dram. Nothing really going on, but that may have been done intentionally. I suspect that refill and third fill casks were used in an attempt to impart as little influence over the new make spirit as possible in order to showcase the special barley varietal. Unfortunately that resulted in a rather forgettable dram. At close to $90 it’s also quite pricy for what you get. So I’d recommend not bothering with this one if tempted to try something new. 2.75 Cheers

You ever feel that sometimes you concentrate on the wrong things, and end up missing the bigger picture? There’s this video on YouTube, search under “miss the gorilla while ball is passed”. You’re gazing at this ball being passed around so much that you end up missing a huge gorilla pounding his chest right in the middle of the action. You know...sort of like concentrating on the Great Southern Wall while China whoops our ass in the next gen technology. Defunding education and giving teachers low wages while India and Singapore produce the next generation of the brightest minds. Trying to dig for coal while Russia ups the game in cyber threat security. Yeah...that type of loss of focus. This little beauty here, courtesy of my buddy @LeeEvolved, had you looking at the fact that the barley is a six row instead of two ( or vice versa..whatever ), and that it’s locally grown in an Islay farm. Conjures up romantic images of the locally produced good being better than a mass produced ( which in many cases...yes). But I sort of felt the romanticism was lost by the fact that this was middle of road, a bit young , and just a tad harsh. Nothing a few more years in the barrel couldn’t have solved. Light lemon drops, some cereals, and oranges on the palette. Not bad, but nothing to make it stand out considering the micro-provenance of the ingredients. The moral of the story? Focus. And keep the long view.

I was incredibly lucky to find this at Harper Liquor Land near Detroit MI. I paid around $95, and I’ve seen it listed for far more. Nose - honey and green apple, sharp slightly bitter lemon peel, floral like an expensive perfume, cereal grains, some pear Palette - medium bodied, strong pear and honey on the first sip, apple and granola, floral notes again and honeysuckle, some lemon zest as well Finish - long lingering floral and green fruit, medium but pleasant burn

First opened No water Nose - pears, molasses, grain, applesauce Taste - grain, sweetness, slight burn Overall - it succeeds in highlighting the barley used, straight-forward in flavor, not as oily as other Bruichladdich scotches.