Bruichladdich 30 Year (1986) Rare Cask Series “1986/30 The Magnificent Seven”

Review by: The Muskox

Okay, enough of that Total Wine garbage, let’s drink some serious whisky.

I am extremely grateful to have been poured this whisky by my friend Robert – thanks, dude!! In fact, he poured me a whole set of blind whiskies – all of which are as insane as this one. What a guy. I did take notes and make guesses while the drams were blind, but the notes and thoughts below are on the second pour. This way I can actually focus on taking notes, enjoyment, and giving the whisky a proper rest, as opposed to frantically trying to guess what I’m drinking.

This whisky represented the last of Bruichladdich’s 1986-vintage casks, “supercharged” with a double-sherry maturation.

Distillery: Bruichladdich.

Bottler: Official bottling.

Region: Islay.

ABV: 44.6%. Cask strength.

Age: 30 years. Distilled in 1986. Bottled in 2017.

Cask type: Initially matured in Oloroso sherry casks, then finished for four years in first-fill PX sherry caks.

Color: Light amber. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

Nose: Deep, rich, intense sherry. Lots of dark and sweet fruit – wine gums, cough drops, plums, cassis, and mixed berry cobbler. Dark toffee, graham crackers, maple candies. Some tarter fruit notes of green apple and guava. Rooibos and raspberry leaf tea. Black pepper and hay, a little medicinal, and some slightly savoury notes of stewed carrots and wine sauce. Even a little meaty.

Palate: Medium texture. Arrives rather softly, but very creamy and very lush – maple butter, mixed berries, pear, vanilla, and honey on toast. It slowly turns earth as it develops, with tobacco, dank cellars, and flamed maple wood. Lots of cassis and blueberry jam. Rosewater and honeydew.

Finish: Long and shifting. Waves of meatiness and sweet sherry. Raspberries, melon, red apple, and a little pineapple. Demerara sugar and red licorice. Slight salt and a hint of peat smoke.

Possible SMWS bottling name: “Wine cellar dinner and digestifs”

Conclusion: Yeah… that’s good. Nice complexity, good texture, long finish, and loads of deep flavours. Blind, I guessed this was some kind of rich-distillate deep-sherry-cask malt, but didn’t come up with Bruichladdich. There’s loads of sherry, so if that’s your jam, you’ll dig this. For my palate, this probably could have gone without the PX finish, which adds some complexity but maybe a bit too much candy at times. But I don’t know, McEwan thought it was necessary. It’s got more to it than some of the 90s GlenDronach casks I’ve tried – that savoury character is different and interesting. I like.

Final Score: 87.

Scoring Legend:

  • 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
  • 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
  • 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
  • 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
  • 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
  • 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
  • 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
  • 50-59: Save it for mixing.
  • 0-49: Blech.

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