Bunnahabhain Batch 1 - That Boutique-y Whisky Company

That Boutique-y Whisky Company is the brainchild of the chaps over at Master of Malt. While many independent bottlers will bottle single casks or blended expressions TBWC (can't be fussed typing the whole thing over and over again!) actually bottle blended malts from the same distillery as unofficial single malts.

In case you're wondering they're the ones with the cartoon illustrations on 50cl bottles. Quite stylish.

Apart from their artistic approach to labels I realized there was a complete lack of information on their bottlings. Definitely no age statements. Just batches. They claim that even they don't know what they're going to get next time around so their might be 30 years between batches.

Nothing much about the casks used or any type of special maturation or blending. Nothing.

Now I don't mind a bit of mystique but I would like some type of information on what I'm throwing back. Especially since they're not exactly cheap.

But, hey, what are you gonna do?

This expression is a No Age Statement Bunnahabhain bottled at 46.1% and is one of 233 numbered bottles.

Nose: Hint of smoky peat with a mild ginger spice. It's quite musty and reminds me of moist mushrooms and bran soaked in warm milk. Get past that and some sweeter citrus honey and chocolate notes emerge. Finally ends with an air of coastal sea salt, kelp and rain-soaked jute bags.

Palate: Starts off savory with dark cocoa beans and black pepper. The second sip brings out a lot of honey sweetness and fruits. But it's the brown coffee and cinnamon toast that largely define this palate.

Finish: Medium oily with the same salty cocoa beans.

This is quite an accomplished little whisky and is a touch edgy compared to the original bottlings. I like it.

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