Rocks, Waves and Peat…oh my!
July 1st, 2008Bruichladdich is re-organizing some of their whiskies to create a more cohesive, easy to understand portfolio spanning three different peating levels. Details, as described to me from the press release I received, follows:
Bruichladdich have released three dramatic new versions of their successful multi-vintage range of single malt whisky.
Each cuvée is masterfully assembled by whisky legend Jim McEwan from several ages of
Bruichladdich single malt, from different cask types and diverse whisky characteristics. The concept was originally inspired by Champagne’s Remi Krug: “With a single vintage, it is God who decides on the quality. But with a multi-vintage, I am God.”
The three new bottlings are Rocks, Waves and Peat, each designed to show the full repertoire of Bruichladdich style and peat flavour - the whole gamut of Islay whiskies. MD Mark Reynier says: “They had evolved haphazardly. We have brought them together under one umbrella, new bottlings, each with it’s own distinct identity and flavour profile:”
“Rocks is the classic aperitif cuvée - minimal peat, so deliciously fresh and fruity - with a surprisingly sophisticated flavour profile thanks to the French oak cask influences.”
“Waves is mildly peaty at around 15ppm, beguilingly elegant with oodles of Bruichladdich finesse and fruit. A real anytime of day dram.”
“Peat does what it says on the tin. It replaces the 3D range, has been toned down a bit with an average peatiness of around 35ppm. Plenty of peat but with out the medicine.”
UK Retail prices around: Rocks £24, Waves £30 Peat £30. Double that for approximate price in US Dollars. I will provide better details on pricing and availability as I get them.
As a side note, you might find my Wordwide Whiskies column in the new issue of Malt Advocate magazine very timely. The title of the column is: “The New Age of No Age,” with the pull quote saying: “How do whisky companies sell whisky without an age statement? The give the whisky a name! Preferably it’s a name that describes how the whisky was made and how it tastes.”
You’ll be seeing a lot more of this as whisky companies decide what to do with all the spirit they are producing right now once the spirit becomes legal whisky in a few years.
July 1st, 2008 at 1:19 pm
So Peat replaces 3-D, but what to Rocks and Waves replace or are they new expressions?
July 1st, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Rocks is an existing item.
July 6th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
John- I just got back from the Bruichladdich whisky academy. We had a chance to sample all three (rocks, waves and peat). While working on the bottling line we were packaging the “rocks”. I found the rocks to be a very nice dram. Peat is another choice dram if you like the smoky, which I do (I have a 2ed fill sherry hogshead of Port Charlotte aging at Buuichladdich from Nov. 2002). We found the “waves” (seven year old) to be a sub par dram. Our party of 6 did not care for it at all. So I asked several of the distillery workers what they thought of waves. One comment I got was “Tom cat piss”. Others just shook their heads. We all happen to agree. Cheers for rocks and peat. Ron
July 6th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
Thanks Ron for the inside scoop! How is your Port Charlotte coming along? Did you get to taste it when you were over there?
July 6th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
John- I got to taste my Port Charlotte twice, once while we were in the whisky academy and once when our wives joined us on the last day. I can tell you it is to die for. The assistent distillery manager Allan Logan got to taste it and he said that it is like a 15 year old. I cannot believe how much color it has and even at cask strength it is smooth and peaty and wonderful. I can undertand why they are selling the PC6 at such an exhorbitant price for a 6 year old (~$130/bottle). If it is anything like mine it is well worth it. I brought back a 20 cl bottle of my PC 5.5 and enjoy every day savoring the aroma. I can’t wait to ship my cask back home but I will wait until it is 10 years old. Ron
July 6th, 2008 at 7:33 pm
I think waiting until it is 10 is a wise decision. And it gives you something to look forward to.
July 9th, 2008 at 10:25 am
Ron (et. al.):
Mark Renier of Bruichladdich actually responded to me (via email) regarding your comment about the Waves. I’m including it here:
Ron, I would like to point out a couple of things: ” Waves 7 year old” is not the new Waves Multi-Vintage cuvee featured in your report. The original version, a 7 year old (never released in the US) was a much more heavily peated version, much heftier than the current new version created by Jim. I am surprised by the unflattering comments attributed to ‘distillery workers’. Of course not every member of staff likes peated whisky! Each to their own!
Interestingly, In the staff’s monthly whisky allowance, when given a free choice between Rocks or Waves - the split is usually about 50-50. The all new Waves Multi-Vintage cuvee, with the peat influence toned down a bit is really very alluringly drinkable - as you will soon discover… Mark
All this has me intrigued. I am looking forward to trying (and hopefully not making) Waves. — John
July 11th, 2008 at 10:37 am
Ron, I re-read your initial note to me (above) about the Waves and gave it some additional thought.
I must say that I can understand you (or anyone else) not liking a whisky, but for someone to actually call the whisky “Tom cat piss” is pretty harsh. Bruichladdich puts out a dizzying array of whiskies and I certainly like some more than others. But to describe something as Tom cat piss…I know a lot of Laddie workers who take a lot of pride in what they do and can only imagine how they would feel if they read that comment.
One thing is for certain. There’s certainly a buzz going around now about this new Laddie trio and I am looking forward to trying the Waves in due time.
July 20th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
John- As you note, the taste of whisky is a very personal issue. I was only reporting what I was told. While I did not prefer the Waves, I would not use such a harsh term to describe it. It was clear that several of the workers did not care for the whisky and one used a “colorful” term in describing it. With all of the excellent Bruichladdich whiskies to choose from there is bound to be one that doesn’t get high marks. Ron