Bruichladdich Resurrection 2001

46% abv

Score:  85.5/100

Alright…lemme just put my sunglasses on then we’ll get down to business with this one.

Much like the recent Laddie Ten, the release of this 2001 Resurrection was a cause for much celebration.  It was the first proper release of new spirit from the recently revitalized distillery after the 2001 reopening.  Other Bruichladdich releases had been either propped up by, or completely composed of, malts produced in the days before the distillery’s 1994 closure and subsequent purchase and reopening.

Think of this one much as watching your firstborn taking his/her first steps.  Gotta have a little pride there, I imagine.  The Bruichladdich family had worked long and hard to see this moment.  About seven years actually.

The Bruichladdich lads and lasses run three standard ranges through the same set of stills.  The smoke monster, Octomore; the buttery peat beastie Port Charlotte (which they claim is ‘moderately’ peated…and really is honestly the heaviest ‘moderate’ peating I’ve ever encountered); and the standard peat-free Bruichladdich.  That leaves this expression, which boasts a peating level of about 10 parts per million (ppm), as sort of an anomaly.  In this case though, there’s no shame in being a bit of an outcast.

The outturn on this one was about 24,000 bottles and, as the release date was back in 2008, if you didn’t scoop one then you may have issues tracking one down now.  Well worth the attempt.

Not great, but quite good.

Nose:  Peat and smoke here, larger than most ‘Laddies, but more restrained than most Islay malts.  Some figgy notes.  Ocean spray (uh…the real stuff coming off the water, not the cranberry cocktail).  Butter cream and damp hay.  Melon and creamy caramel.  Hint of licorice

Palate:  Peppery.  Slightly wine-ish.  Salty.  Fairly fruity, but the individual notes haven’t coalesced yet in and of themselves, or as a working unit.  What I mean really is…there’s an overarching sweetness here, but no individual notes to be properly discerned…and…it’s still not quite coming together yet either.  Barley.  More balls on palate than nose.  Oxidation time helps

– Reviewed by:  Curt

– Photo:  Curt