Berry Bros and Rudd Whisky 15 yo Bunnahabhain Distillery 2003/2019 Single Malt Whisky Cl 70

Berry Bros and Rudd from Bunnahabhain Distillery 2003/2019 Cask #4002 Single Malt Whisky

Bunnahabhain is an Islay distillery founded in 1881. Pronounced “Boo-na-ha-ven” and meaning “mouth of the river,” Bunnahabhain is accessible via a winding lane off the main road to Port Askaig. Its distillery is arranged around a courtyard in a style reminiscent of a Bordeaux chateau. Despite expansion in 1963, the distillery has changed little. Bunnahabhain is sometimes referred to as “Islay whiskey without the character of Islay.” Being less peaty than other Islay malts, its light color (for an Islay) is attributable to the fact that spring water is drawn in before it flows “over and through” the well-known Islay malt. This quality is further enhanced by the distillery’s practice of taking only a very narrow cut from the second distillation.

The characteristic unctuousness of Bunnahabhain malt is due to the short-necked stills used. Bunnahabhain is described as sweeter than other Islays, with a smooth initial palate and a long, full finish. Lighter than the Islay style, with a full, rounded flavor. In most cases, Bunnahabhain Single Malt is composed of barley malt dried using a fuel source other than peat so as not to impart smoky, medicinal, iodine-like aromas. Sometimes, Bunnahabhain produces batches of a spirit made from barley that has been soaked in the pungent (some would say acrid) smell of peat smoke as it dried.