Trivia about Bruichladdich: Bruichladdich distillery is open to visitors all year, Monday to Friday.
Tours are available at 10.30am 11.30am and 2.30am (and at 10.30am on Summer Saturdays).

The Bruichladdich distillery lies on
the north shore of Lochindaal (directly
opposite Bowmore), which made it the
westernmost distillery in Scotland until
Kilchoman was officially opened in 2005.

In 1938 Bruichladdich (also known as Bruichladdie) was sold to Hatim Attari, Joheph W.Hobbs and Alexander W.Tolmie. And the distillery kept changing hands like a hot potato. In 1952 it was sold to Ross & Coulter Ltd, who in turn sold it to A.B. Grant in 1960. Invergordon Distillers acquired Bruichladdich in 1968 and expanded the number of stills from two to four in 1975, before selling it on to JBB / Whyte & Mackay.

Apart from the traditionally lightly peated spirit that is still produced under the name Bruichladdich, two more heavily peated malts are being produced at the distillery. A heavily peated (40 PPM) malt under the name 'Port Charlotte' (the name of the village two miles south of the distillery) is being produced since October 2002 and they also have an even more heavily peated (80.5 PPM) malt with the name 'Octomore'. This is the name of another silent Islay distillery in the area, situated in a farm next to the warehouses of the old Lochindaal distillery. The original Octomore distillery was closed in 1852, three decades before Bruichladdich was built. However, a link with the past remains; Bruichladdich uses spring water from Octomore farm.

Driving force behind the purchase was Murray McDavid's Mark Reynier. Together with other seasoned professionals like Jim McEwan (formerly of Bowmore) they managed to get the production started again in May 2001. Although that new spirit probably won't be widely available until well after 2010, the new owners also acquired a lot of maturing stocks that were laid down by Invergordon and JBB / Whyte & Mackay.

Bruichladdich 10yo (40%, OB, Bottled +/- 1995 under previous owenership, 70cl)
Nose: Smoky, yet subtle aroma. Tingly with some oiliness. Did I imagine that touch of seaweed?
This is odd... It's an Islay whisky but I can find not peat whatsoever. Am I dreaming?
Taste: Rather soft and a little salty. Very light - the lightest Islay I ever tasted actually.
Score: 75 points - not really my cup of tea; I want to be swept off my feet...

Bruichladdich 10yo (46%, OB, Bottled +/- 2001 under new owenership, 70cl)
Nose: Light, soft and sweet. Some banana? Almost flowery. More expressive than I expected.
More 'volume' than the old 10yo, but it slowly fades away over time. Still hardly any peat.
Taste: Clean and smooth, but not a lot of depth. Not as much to enjoy as in the nose.
Score: 77 points - an improvement compared to the previous expression of the 10yo.

Bruichladdich 11yo 1986/1998 (46%, Murray McDavid, Cask Reference MM 2083) - 
Nose: Clean. Fresh with something oily and a pinch of salt. Dry. No peat. Grows fruitier.
A morning walk along the beach after an oilspill. The nose definitely has 'personality'.
Taste: Salty on the surface with a sweetish undercurrent. Turns sour. Woody. Bitter.
Dry. Peppery prickle. More power than the OB's from the 90's but not a lot of depth.
Score: 78 points - maybe this profile would suit wine lovers better than peat freaks?

Bruichladdich 15yo (43%, OB, Bottled +/- 1998 under previous owenership, 33cl)
Nose: Restrained. Sweetish notes. Soap? A little oily. Not a lot of depth, I'm afraid.
Not unlike a very young Caol Ila without the peat. Where's the Islay power I'm looking for?
Taste: Malty start, then some salt and smoke - just a little bit. It's very easily drinkable.
It has a salty bite to it, but it's nothing like the big Islay malts - Ardbeg, Laphroaig, etc.
Score: 77 points - a little above average, bit not something I'd recommend.

Bruichladdich 15yo (46%, OB, Bottled +/- 2001 under new owenership, 70cl)
Nose: More sherried than the new 10yo. Slightly dry. Spicy. Some salt. More salty than peaty.
Cookie-dough sweetness. Growing complexity. This one needs a little bit of time, though.
Taste: Smooth, but with a peaty twang in the background. More potent than the 'old' 15yo.
The taste follows the beat of the nose, but plays a different melody. Recommendable.
Score: 83 points - a major improvement on the 15yo bottled by the previous owners.

Bruichladdich 17yo 'XVII' (46%, OB, Bottled in 2002 under new owenership, 70cl)
Nose: Quite floral? That's odd. It's also maltier and grainier than other Islays. Aniseed?
Toffee? Fruits as well. Lightly salted. A 'transparent' profile for those who appreciate subtlety.
Taste: Malty and sweeter than I expected at first. Again something flowery. Wood.
A little smoky but not heavy on the peat. Clearly identifyable as a Bruichladdich.
Score: 82 points - once again a 'new' Bruichladdich that pleases me.

Bruichladdich 20yo (46%, OB, Bottled +/- 2001 under new owenership, 70cl) 
Nose: Starts out as the peatiest of the 3 'new' Laddies, but softens up after 10 minutes.
Amazing development but it wheezed out after 30 minutes. Well, it's allowed by then...
Taste: Clean, Islay character. What a surprise; the peatiest Bruichladdich I've tried so far.
Score: 81 points - a recommendable dram, but I prefer the (new) 15yo myself.
 

Check out my Track Record for a complete and up-to-date overview of all 'siplings' I've tried.
 
 
 

Bruichladdich was constructed in 1881 by
Robert, William and John Gourlay Harvey.
Members of the Harvey family remained
owners and shareholders until 1929 when
the Bruichladdich distillery was mothballed.

Until recently Associated Scottish Distillers also offered a
so-called 'bastard' bottling of Bruichladdich under the name
Loch Indaal or Lochindaal. This bottle was named after the old
Lochindaal distillery located East of the village of Port Charlotte,
which used to have its own distilleries. Lochindaal operated until
1929 when it was dismantled. Its warehouses are now used to
store the Port Charlotte malt. Until recently Bruichladdich was
the only surviving distillery on the Western peninsula, but since
the new Kilchoman distillery was opened in 2005 by proprietor
Anthony Willis the number of western Islay distilleries doubled.

And the future looks bright for the friendly people of Bruichladdich.
With the new bottling plant that was opened in 2003, Bruichladdich can now bottle its own malts on site, providing some much needed employment opportunities on this relatively remote part of Islay in the process. It's much more convenient for Bruichladdich as well; before they opened the bottling plant they shipped tankers full of spring water from James Brown's farm at Octomore to the mainland to dilute the whisky from the casks to 46%.

The Bruichladdich distillery was mothballed again in January 1995 and sold in 2000 to a consortium of twenty five different shareholders that operated under the name 'Bruichladdich Distillery Co. Ltd.'.

The overwhelming succes that Mark and Jim have had with the bottlings they released from these old stocks is a perfect illustration of the crucial role of careful cask selection; Bruichladdich was transformed from an ugly duckling into a swan. Well, I'm sure clever marketing also helped.