🥃 Whisky Auctioneer

This time I tasted 6 samples from one exchange with a whisky friend in 2021. In my favorite way, i.e. 2x blindly and then 1x after discovery. Coincidentally, 3 of these samples were Bruichladdich. This was number 5 and I enjoyed it the most out of the 3 Bruichladdich. In my evaluation, she finished in first place with the same point gain as Octomore 2009 WhB (WB171465). In addition, it works very well even after adding water.

21 20 21 21 83 Original, tasty, though young, but I want to repeat, bere = good!

Blind tasting of a small sample. I really like the nose, which is very special and reminds a bit of older Littlemills. The taste is too zesty for my taste though.

I smell oak, fruit, alcohol, I taste a typical Bruichladdich, but strong, grapes come, vanilla, I add a drop of water, it is even fruity, but not sweet, the oak remains dominant, the smell remains pleasant, honey comes added. Conclusion, a great malt without frills

Nose 22, taste 22, finish 22, balance 22

Beautiful, exciting and very pleasant whisky, I like it so citrus-heavy

It probably has to grow on you. Very special. Quite entertaining in that regard. But not a great whisky in my book.

This was Serge's best Bere (he scored 90 points - some for bravery partly because of the bad yield of this barley). And I can almost follow suit. To say it with Monty Python: "now for something completly different". Lucious in its own right and certainly a big kudos to the Big Man (no, not Clarence Clemmons) Jim McEwan. Would I have loved to hear Clarence's solo after tasting this dram... yes, and: Jungleland has to suffice... - damn this LP was recorded in 1975...

Whiskyfun: Colour: white wine. Nose: we’re extremely close to the cereal, very ‘organic’, with a lot of porridgy notes, muesli, ginger, grass, branches, leaven, farmhouse loaf... And on top of all that, notes of rye whisky and Dutch genever. The farmiest nose one can find, I’d say (but its very clean). Mouth: love it. Really. First, because it’s different, and second, because it’s extremely good, wandering in other territories such as high-end mescal and tequila. Indeed, it does taste a bit of agave! Very full, very ‘neat’, perfectly chiselled, with sweet spices aplenty including caraway seeds and juniper berries. Excellent mouth feel. Finish: long, vegetal, very ‘precise’. Comments: I guess it makes a lot of sense to stay close to the cereal when you’re distilling such a rare variety. It is a huge surprise and, in my opinion, anything but a ‘vanity bottling’ or a marketing stunt. I’ll even add two or three points because of the craziness of this bottling (imagine bere gives you a yield that’s less than the half of that of classic barley!) And I’ll certainly buy some bottle(s). SGP:372 - 90 points. http://www.whiskyfun.com/archivedecember12-2.html#161212

N 22 P21 F22 B22

The homemade mole, young and not fully formed, but you can see from where the legs grow, so to speak ... when you knew from what rubbish they grow without shame ... reminded me of Glenglasso Evolution - the same style, only much better;

He is very interesting, light, fruity, young and tasty. Rather on the dry side. Well done, but not a high flyer for me. I would not know now if I presented the exact same product with a modern variety of barley, if I would taste the difference. The Laddie Ten remains my favorite from the young part of the standard range, hopefully it will come back.

n: if you have had bere barley whisky before you really can recognize its provenance. this special, very old sort of barley always smells like oolong tea for me. with hints of peaches like the oolong. it´ s mighty fruity but others may interpret this differently, don´t know. other than that it has that maritime , salty character with sea air and iodine that we know from other laddies. very fresh nose. t:  what an attack, and I don´t mean the alcohol. this is bursting with flavours. mostly this peach fruitiness, a little oak and some salt in the aftertase. very simple whisky but lovely in my opinion. straightforward and unique. f:  long and crisp. very fresh and clean comments: totally underrated in my opinion but I can understand that not everybody likes that style. I will lift my mark to 89/100

Overall this is not my cup of tea but if I look at balance between aroma/flavor that's ok

Nice without complexity

Tasted on 07-13-2020.

nose: linseed oil, cereals, whole grain bead,thyme honey,linen sacks mouth: anything from the nose plus pepper something farmy and wet animal fur finsh: good length and satisfying Impressed! What a lovely and characterful whisky 90

Is it just another gimmick, this bere barley? No, it is not! In the nose there is really something different, something unique...a kind of mature maltiness, I have no other words to describe it. Is that nice? Yes, it is. Together with the floral tones and some sweetness it makes quite a rich scent for such a young dram. In the taste there is oak and a fruity sweetness, and warmth somehow. A hint of pepper? The mouth is oily, fatty, lingering in a pleasant finish. This is a whisky on its own, and I really think this bere has to do with that.

A beautiful golden dram which reminds you of summer and barley. You can smell fresh ripe fruits like apples and a hint of vanilla while you walk through a forest. This dram is sugary sweet and tastes like fresh fruits, malty, spicy, peppery, with a gentle oaky dry finish.

N: With all that malt, very mature, very aromatic; there`s vanilla custard, grapefruit blossom, lemon curd and orange zest. Taste: Creamy(oilyish, as I often say ), with acacia honey, butter on toast and some citrus fruits. Nicely lingering. Finish: Vanilla(!), dried grass and roasted chestnuts. Just perfect.

Part 2: Bringing the ancient grain to harvest proved to be a struggle. Wild red deer helped themselves to a lot of the crop - they loved the long ears, each of which carries six rows of grain compared to the two rows found in modern varieties. Even when the combines had gathered what was left and our maltsters had scratched their heads over it, the grain played havoc with the Victorian milling and mashing machinery at the distillery, all of which dates back to when the Bruichladdich was built in 1881. The grist was much denser, richer even, than that produced from modern barley. So the first release of Bere Barley, distilled in 2006, represents a lot of hard work and considerable heartache. But it is the latest expression of the core mission at Bruichladdich, to explore the pedigree of single malt and push the boundaries of what is it possible, often drawing inspiration from ancient traditions. The result was a spirit like no other, that has developed into a whisky with a nose that Master Distiller Jim McEwan describes as "disarming" with a palate that is "succulent". McEwan continues: "It`s very impressive for a spirit so young, from a grain so old. There is an air of gentle grace and innocence that evolves from this spirit that I have never before experienced." This fascinating single malt is a very limited edition of 7,200 bottles at 50% abv. It is unpeated, a straw yellow colour, and in common with all Bruichladdich products has not been subject to either chill filtration or artificial colouring. Source: Bruichladdich.com 2012

Once I bought a Barley Exploration pack and Bere barley was my most favourite one of the bottles! Since then I wanted to buy a full bottle of it. Now the time has come and I’m not disappointed! Very nice whisky, I truly love Bruichladdich’s journey of exploring the different barleys and I’m happy to support it and be part of it!

The Dutch proverb "een beetje vreemd, maar wel lekker" applies here. A translation would say "a bit strange, but very nice". It's weird at first, almost off-putting. But after some time it will grow on you. The spirit is very well-made. Very clean. Good maturation (in a relatively short period of time). Just a very good whisky!

I liked it as a whole and found it rather enjoyable, but it missed a bit due to the simplicity and the quiet palate, along with the awkward transition. Gift sample from a friend

Place: Spirits in the sky Leuven

Where many whiskies invoke memories of fruit orchards and flowery meadows, this is much wilder beast from harsher terrain. Both the wet Scottish highlands and the exotic high Himalayas come to mind. The first from the wet grass the other from the spices and tea. It's a special whisky, very different, great!