Port Charlotte 2014 Islay Barley

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 50% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

The provenance of the barley is central to this Port Charlotte: for the 2014 vintage, all of it came from eight farms on Islay. Cruach, Craigens, Island, Dunlossit, Coull, Rockside, Sunderland and Mulindry are all within roughly 24 kilometres of the distillery. Growing barley places considerable demands on the farms, as changeable weather, wild geese and deer mean that a successful island harvest is far from guaranteed.

The whisky was distilled in 2014 and matured for seven years. Its cask composition comprises 84% first-fill bourbon casks, 8% second-fill oak casks originally used as virgin oak, and 8% second-fill Bordeaux wine casks. These two smaller cask proportions complement maturation shaped predominantly by bourbon casks.

The heavily peated malt has a phenol level of 40 ppm. Despite its pronounced smoky character, the whisky leaves ample room for fruit and malty sweetness. All maturation takes place on Islay, and island spring water is also used for bottling. The single malt is bottled at 50% alcohol without chill filtration or added colouring. This variant contains one 0.7-litre bottle and comes without gift packaging.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: Malty biscuit notes and a little peat smoke appear first, followed by vanilla, honey, toffee and crème brûlée. With time in the glass, lemon zest, grapefruit, ripe melon, peach and crisp red apple unfold. Maritime notes mingle with woody spice, nutmeg and cinnamon.
• Palate: On the palate, citrus notes meet sweet, ripe fruit and elegant peat smoke. Salty maritime impressions complement toasted oak. The second sip brings out apricot, peach and ripe melon, accompanied by peat smoke and burnt heather. Subtle hints of coconut, marzipan and tobacco add further detail.
• Finish: The finish combines soft, ripe stone fruit with the sweetness of toasted oak. Campfire and barbecue smoke notes complement the fruity, sweet aftertaste.

Distillery/Bottler:

Port Charlotte is made at Bruichladdich Distillery on the shores of Loch Indaal on Islay. The Harvey brothers founded the distillery in 1881. Following its closure in 1994, Mark Reynier, Simon Coughlin and experienced whisky producer Jim McEwan brought it back into operation in 2001. Reynier and Coughlin came from the wine world and carried its interest in provenance and terroir into whisky production.

Unpeated single malts are produced under the Bruichladdich name, while Port Charlotte is the distillery's heavily peated range. Port Charlotte is distilled slowly in tall stills with narrow necks. Alongside cask selection, collaboration with barley growers is part of the distillery's approach: its partnerships on Islay support crop diversity and farming methods that improve the soil. Distillation, maturation and bottling all remain on the island.

Facts: