Black Art is the yearly ‘enigma’ release from Bruichladdich distillery. They use pre-renaissance casks, including some of the oldest spirit in the warehouse. The last edition I tried was Black Art 09.1.
Bruichladdich Black Art Edition 11.1 is a 24 year old single malt but the cask types and final recipe are undisclosed.
Bruichladdich ‘Black Art 11.1’ 24 yo (44,2%, OB 2024)
Nose: quite complex, with a good dose of sherry. There are blackberries and poached pears, as well as leathery notes and whiffs of pipe tobacco. Some herbal honey, macadamia nuts and plums. Then a light tropical note comes out (banana and ripe mango) with subtle strawberry marshmallow and an earthy touch. Some heady notes of furniture polish and eucalyptus too, along with a hint of cognac. Really fruit-forward and nicely complex.
Mouth: quite a complex (and slightly unusual) profile again with so many different flashes fighting for attention. Raspberry, blackcurrants, raisins and tangerines. These are quickly mixing with cloves, grape pips and drying tannins. Toasted wood. Then leather and dried herbs. Some leafy notes, as well as pink grapefruit, liquorice roots, bitter oranges and even a mustardy edge.
Finish: long, still wine-forward, with earthy tea, drying minerals, hints of marzipan and tannins.
A classic Black Art experience: it starts off really well, but it looses a lot of points on the palate as the wine takes over entirely. I really like the nose and I appreciate the overall complexity, but old wine casks leave a pesky impression. An interesting Black Art again, but not perfect and rather expensive. I’d love to see a release with less wine. Available from The Whisky Exchange or Royal Mile Whiskies for instance.