Tamnavulin 15 Year (Berry Brothers and Rudd)

 

I haven't had a lot of Tamnavulin in all my years of drinking single malt. In fact, a look through my index indicates I haven't had *any* and this is the first (!). I don't think that's true, but I think the other Tamnavulin drams I've sampled were little pours had at Scotch Malt Whisky Society ("SMWS") events, and didn't merit a full write-up. 

Caol Ila 11 Year (Berry Bros and Rudd)

 

Caol Ila is a fascinating distillery. Easily the largest facility on Islay, because it's mostly buried by Diageo the general public has almost no awareness of the name. The people I meet in bars who can even pronounce Caol Ila are few and far between. 

Yet since so much of the spirit gets sold off to independent bottlers (although that situation seems vaguely precarious, and a couple years ago there were rumors it might end or at least curtail), there are myriad presentations of Caol Ila, some of which are simply stunning. 

Glen Garioch 12 Year (Berry Brothers and Rudd "Glens & Valleys")

 

My history with Glen Garioch is a weird one: I had never had anything by them, and, in a fit of pique, I bought three 18-year old single cask offerings from three sister casks all distilled on the same day from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. 

Dalmore 12 Year (Berry Brothers and Rudd, "Coasts and Shores")

 

Every three or four months, I get together with a group of friends who have known each other since kindergarten - 40 years this September, which is mind-blowing. We tend to gather early in the morning and sip beer and spirits while reviewing our lives over the last quarter year, comparing and contrasting how life has treated us. Basically exactly what scotch whisky was invented for! 

Ben Nevis 9 Year (Mossburn / Berry Brothers and Rudd)

 

Here is an unusual case: two independent bottlers working in tandem on a single bottle! This is Mossburn partnered with Berry Brothers & Rudd, and I'm not quite sure the story, but it seems like Berry Brothers & Rudd selected the cask and then Mossburn took control of it and aged it (?). 

Lochindaal 12 Year (Berry Brothers and Rudd)

 

Few distilleries seem to get things right as much or as often as Bruichladdich these days. In an era where official distillery bottlings seem hopelessly flawed - bottled at the legal minimum, chill filtered, poor casks and too-safe spirit, and - worst of all - rising prices for all of that, Bruichladdich has gone the other direction: consistently high quality, bottling at 50%, interesting wine casks and high quality bourbon casks, no chill filtration ... what drinkers of scotch like to call "integrity presentation."

Unnamed Orkney (Highland Park) 15 Year (Berry Bros and Rudd)

 

Almost every time you see "Unnamed Orkney" or "Orkney Islands" on a bottle of independently bottled single malt Scotch, it's Highland Park. I don't know why The Edrington Group (who also owns Macallan and Glenrothes) are so weird about the name, it's an open secret, but there it is. I can't remember a single instance of "Orkney" meaning Scapa. 

Glen Moray 15 Year (Berry Bros and Rudd)

 

Some of the best single cask scotches I've had as a member of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society are from Glen Moray - another distillery who has lackluster (severely so) distillery bottlings but incredibly good independently bottled varities. 

While the official distillery releases are rather blandly sweet and have mostly little depth - at least the ones I've had - nearly every independent bottle I've had has been intensely rich (albeit also sweet) and full of complexity. So when I saw this 15 year bottling from Berry Brothers and Rudd, temptation gave way. 

Glenturret 13 Year (Berry Brothers & Rudd)

 

The third of my five Berry Brothers and Rudd (BBR) bottles I splurged on: a sherry-matured 13 year peated Glenturret (also known as Ruadh Maor). 

Dailuaine 13 Year (Berry Brothers & Rudd)

 

The second of five Berry Brothers and Rudd bottles I obtained just after their DC opening. They actually have quite a few bottles I'm interested in, but until my next employment opportunity comes through I'll be savoring this interesting 13 (?)-year Dailuaine with a Moscatel finish. 

Ardmore 11 Year (Berry Bros & Rudd)

 

My review hiatus is, for now, ended: I have eight or nine bottles to work through in the next couple months. 

This one is a single cask Ardmore from Berry Brothers and Rudd. Berry Brothers and Rudd is a wine merchant originating in London, and was founded all the way back in 1698 (!), making them the oldest wine and spirits merchant in the UK. 

Until last week, they had no official presence in the United States, but they just opened their flagship store - and it happens to be here in Washington DC! In fact, steps away from an old office where I used to work.