Brora 30 Years - 2nd Special Release (Bot. 2003)

DESCRIPTION

'Rich and complex, this unfolds slowly and has richness, balance, texture, sweet waxy fruits and a lift of smoke. Some package. 9/10' Dave Broom, Whisky Magazine April 2004

TASTING NOTES (by Whiskyfun.com)

When I had this one the first time – it was blind -, I answered Dave Broom it was Talisker, and that was in front of fifty French aficionados. Laughable? Well, remember Brora and Talisker were sharing the same maltings back then ;-)… Okay, let’s have another go at it now. Colour: gold. Nose: wow! Taliskerish indeed… Coffee at first, and then some huge farmy notes, but not in a vulgar way this time, whereas many young farmy Islayers… Well, you see what I mean. Lots of tropical fruits (pineapple liqueur), dried pear, fig spirit, smoke and pepper. Hints of tiger balm, horse stable, wet dog. It gets grassy after a while (fresh celery, roots, hay). Goes on with some ‘coastal’ notes (lots of seaweed)… and always a superb balance… how elegant! Simply beautiful, better than I remembered.
Mouth: wow!!! How rich and bold, yet perfectly balanced and, again, elegant. Starts on some bold liquorice stick, roots (gentian), with hints of fructose and lots of smoke, rubber, tar… Sweeter than expected (dried fruits). Lots of cold herbal tea. Again, just superb. Some toffee, crystallised orange, ginger. It gets quite spicy after a while, with some nutmeg and clove. Strong honey (chestnut honey). How complex! The finish is long, on rooty notes, nectar and white pepper, and I can't stop loving it. Okay, another ‘unspittable’ Brora! It appears that the 87 points I gave this one when Dave made me taste it last time were influenced by my mishap. Now I feel it’s rather worth 93 points. Yep, no less. Now I have to taste the 3rd batch, bottled this year.

PRODUCT SUMMARY