The newest Bruichladdich Octomore, the second edition of this ultra-peated whisky, will be even peatier than the first one. Check out the details on the Bruichladdich Blog.
August 12th, 2009
Whisky Advocate Blog
News and views from Editor & Publisher John Hansell and the Whisky Advocate Writers
This ppm race is funny.
The previous Octomore actually didn’t taste peatier than any Ardbeg.
I will be receiving one tomorrow.
The characteristics of the Bruichladdich still will not allow it to taste like an heavily peated Ardbeg or as medicinal as a Laphroaig.
B’Laddies stil’s will always give a gentle, floral characteristic to the spirit. That’s why they call it “a fist in a velvet glove”.
Don’t forget that the 140ppm peating is in the barley. That will be considerably less in the spirit. Almost halve, I think.
Funny that people call it a race.
The race must have started 7 or 8 years ago, because that’s when the spirit was distilled.
Can we be sure that Jim McEwan and Stuart Thomson were already racing together? And why do we haven’t heard of it before?
You can’t start a race now, because of the nature of the beast.
Maybe they had the same idea at the same time. Why… because they can, or could!
I had a sample of it and was pretty underwhelmed. It is very sweet and too smokey (I didn’t knew that was possible before). I found it unpleasant, momodimensional and utterly overpriced.
When I tried the first release I did not find it unpleasent, but monodimensional and too expensive as well.
We have a case worth sitting in a cask somewhere in the warehouse – If its ready we will pick it up when we are over there in March of 2010 – We tasted it in 2007 but that could have been Octomore I – not sure but we are looking forward to it -
B.J., we’ve got 2 copies of Octomore 2nd edition 02.1, 5/ -09, 62.5%, on the way. when it comes we’ll taste it against 01.1 & let you know. we’ll probably do it up right by including all of the Supernovas & all 4 PCs + the Bruichladdich X4 Quadruple Distilled New Spirit, 50.% & its successor= the X4+3, 3/ -09, 63.5%, which should come with the 2nd ed. after all that we should be fire-breathing .>^<. dragons.
it probably goes against my well honed & otherwise fairly conservative value/price approaches/instincts BUT, when anything that
seems to actually push the envelope comes along, i’m usually inclined to accept the fact that it’s gonna cost more than it should & take the plunge. i usually justify it as a learning thing &, when push comes to shove, my experience/memory tells me that i’ve done a whole lot better with this sort of adventure than i have with laying out similar (usually far greater) amounts for highly touted but personally untried venerable relics. both from the standpoint of repeated pleasure(s) & advancing knowledge, i have to say overall success/satisfaction has rested overwhelmingly with the newbies.
you pays your money & you takes your shots
BJ, you lucky dog you!
The SWA should have a look at promotion of whisky by phenol counts. As noted, 140ppm is the figure for the malt, not the whisky. It’s probably well less than a third of that–there seems to be a point of diminishing returns. Anyway, I think this is dishonest. I also think the price is absurd, for what ought to be at best a curiosity–something done not because it makes good whisky, but just for its own sake. But there’s a peatsucker born every minute, isn’t there?
I think when we purchased the “futures” case we paid $50 but then when its bottled we have to pay all the duties and other costs so not sure what the final cost is going to be.
Harvey, be sure to let me know what you think – comparing with Octomore I and Supernova may be the best comparisons -