Bruichladdich The Classic Laddie
November 15, 2024
This review is not about something limited, or esoteric, or hard to find. In fact, it’s a classic! I’m talking about The Classic Laddie, distilled at the Bruichladdich Distillery, in the village of Bruichladdich, on the southwestern tip of the isle of Islay, which is located in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland.
Let’s begin with a quick pronunciation refresher: brook-LAD-dee. Now if you spend any time around whisky people who love Bruichladdich and The Classic Laddie, what you’ll soon discover is that the love affair goes beyond just the whisky and involves an almost cult-like fascination with the distillery’s aqua colored bottle which, in turn, is also the distillery’s branding color. And I have to admit, I’m a Bruichladdich aqua color fan boy, too!
I find it interesting that Bruichladdich goes to great lengths to talk about their sustainability efforts and how transparent they are with everything and yet they sell some of the most untransparent bottles in the whisky world! If I had one complaint about The Classic Laddie marketing it’s that I like to be able to see how much whisky is left in the bottle when it’s sitting on the shelf. But, I do like the color.
Bruichladdich is known for making whiskies that use some of the most heavily peated barley in the world but they also make a range of whiskies that are very much unpeated and the Classic Laddie is their signature bottling from that category.
With most whiskies I can easily tell you the two or three casks that were used in the maturation and finishing process. But The Classic Laddie is different. Using the code that they stamp on every bottle, I can go to their website and tell you that this particular release is actually a vatting of 80 casks, 14 cask TYPES, 4 vintages, and 7 barley types. So there’s a lot of complexity that goes into each bottle. But I can tell you with certainty is that, like all Bruichladdich releases, The Classic Laddie is non-chill filtered and has no color added. Because Bruichladdich gets it.
It’s got a nice light golden color to it with viscous legs trying desperately to slow their roll as they pick up speed down the glass.
Nose:
There’s a nice subtle scent of lemons followed by a more robust sense of fruit. I pick up a pleasing memory scent, those sugar-coated orange chewy candies, the ones that come in the shape of a half orange. I don’t reach a brand name but I remember the flavor. There’s also the smell of vanilla. And what I can only call the smell of fresh cut hay.
Palate:
The first taste comes up to me like a handshake from some cherry cough syrup. Then I get some of the sea: I’ll go with canned tuna fish. I taste a little spice, like anise. Then I get some charred caramel. And, finally, there’s the fun taste of movie theatre buttered popcorn. And not that fake stuff, I’m talking about real butter.
Because this one comes in at 50 percent ABV it definitely got some water for my tasting.
Nose + Water:
Ahhh, the water brings out some of that Islay brine for me. With a few drops I get more of the beach. And as the late, great Jimmy Buffett said, “If there’s a heaven for me, I’m sure there’s a beach attached to it.” And, in addition, I pick up a little more fruit forward nose.
Palate + Water:
When I add water, I taste more of a sweetness there. And the vanilla is also much more pronounced. In addition, I get the flavor of chocolate covered licorice.
Finish:
The finish is moderate in length. I get a sweetness on the lips, some seaweed, a root beer lollipop that’s been dipped in sweet molasses, and some vanilla cologne.
Comparison:
Now, the bottle shape and design of the current Bruichladdich releases is relatively new for Bruichladdich and since I still have one of the older shaped bottles - shall we say, the classic shape - and one that still has some left in it, I thought it would be interesting to do a comparison. Using the bottling date stamped into the glass, I noticed there was a 4 year difference between my two releases.
As far as the nose goes, they seem to have the same nosing profile.
However, on the palate you can tell the older one is the Classic Laddie. But it’s not identical.
I get the sweetness. I get the ocean spray. I get the fruits. But I get more of the maltiness showing up and it seems to bring just a touch of lingering harshness to the palate. Still an enjoyable dram but I’d give the nod to the newer release. Slightly more rounded.
Rating:
I’ve enjoyed The Classic Laddie for many years now and I don’t think that’s gonna change any time soon. I don’t consider it the best whisky on my shelf but for an un-peated Islay whisky with a great ABV, every time I open it up, I’m never disappointed. And the fact that it’s the most affordable Bruichladdich whisky out there is not a bad thing, either. I’m OK with giving the Bruichladdich Classic Laddie release a nine finger pour.
Age Statement: NAS
ABV: 50 %
Chill-filtered: no
E150a caramel coloring added: no
Average Price (750ml): $50 (US)
https://www.bruichladdich.com/products/bruichladdich-the-classic-laddie
