Here’s a quick trip to Holland. Whiskybase selected a single cask Benromach 2008 earlier this year. This is complemented with two bottlings from their Archives series: Bruichladdich 2006 from a heavyweight sherry cask and a pure Williamson 2014.
Benromach 18 yo 2008 (59,1%, OB for Whiskybase 2026, first-fill bourbon barrel #40, 229 btl.)
Nose: a nice mineral profile, with hints of concrete dusting, wet gravel and raw barley. A very light smoky note, as well as some sweeter hints of vanilla and light honey. Later we get candied lemons and warm hints of hay. Broken branches and some sunflower oil as well. Ticks the right boxes.
Mouth: slightly sweeter, with lemon sweets and vanilla custard. A nice waxy texture, even a wee hint of guava. Mid-palate it gets a little sharper again, with more gravel, mustard seeds and more barley dust. The layer of wood smoke is quite big, with a pleasant leafy side and lots of sooty ashes.
Finish: fairly long, with a peppery edge, smoke and salted liquorice.
Very reliable whisky, nicely balancing between austerity and roundness. Pleasantly unmodern, showing enough complexity to keep us happy! Still available from the Whiskybase Shop.
Bruichladdich 19 yo 2006 (57,1%, Archives ‘Fishes of Samoa’ 2025, first-fill sherry hogshead #1345, 240 btl.)
Nose: grandma’s dusty cabinet, with some leather and sour pipe tobacco. There’s also a slightly funky, butyric edge (sour milk) and a wee rubbery note. On the other hand also blackberries, cranberries and dried figs. Some closer to a red wine cask than to a sherry cask, I’d say.
Mouth: that wine character is taken further. Some tannic hints, more sourness again, now also showing a bitter leafy note. Leathery dryness, with a farmyard note and quite some drying wood spice, mostly clove and aniseed. Then grape pips and herbal tea, as well as some bitter chocolate.
Finish: quite long, with more tobacco and charred wood, along with a few drops of quina.
This reminded me of some of those funky Black Art bottlings. Full of personality, with some glorious old-school sherry notes but somehow also an astringent edge. Still available from the Whiskybase Shop. Score: 86/100
Williamson 11 yo 2014 (61,4%, Archives for Heads & Tails ‘British Dragonflies’ 2025, bourbon barrel #291, 189 btl.)
Nose: a lot of thick, smoked bacon with exhaust fumes and hints of tar. Also a lot of bandages, mercurochrome and salty sea air. Smoked kippers. Then flinty notes and a greasy note. In the background we find light hints of banana and a subtle whiff of hairspray.
Mouth: powerful and rather hot, immediately on salty liquorice, more tarry notes and smoked grapefruits. Also lots of medicinal and maritime notes again. Hints of almond oil and subtle vanilla. Later spicy notes take over, mainly white pepper and a hint of wasabi, while charcoal notes stay strong underneath.
Finish: quite long, still full of medicinal desinfectants, charred citrus and salty liquorice.
Very intense, deeply medicinal Laphroaig. Only for people with a proper fireplace, I’d say, and enough money to have some caviar with it. Not sure whether this is still available in Canada. Score: 88/100