Bruichladdich confuses me, where to start?

I had/have the exact same thought! The Arran is similar, but not quite so bad as Bruichladdich. My mind was made up for me when I found a miniature of the Bruichladdich Links, The Old Course St. Andrews - 17th Hole. I found it enjoyable. From there, however, I'm at a bit of a loss. Frankly, I'm not too keen on distilleries that produce so many varietals. Maybe I'm just too much of a traditionalist, but I like a distillery to have three or four core products (10y, 12y, 18y, 21y?) with perhaps one or two extra specialty bottlings (wood finish, cask strength, etc...) Of course, this doesn't mean they can't release older whiskies, but I'm not really in the market for most 25yr+ whiskies.

Look at Laphroaig (10y, 18y, Quarter Cask, Cask Strength) and Aberlour (10y, 12y, 16y, 18y, A'Bunadh). Perfect ranges. It lets you get to know THAT BRAND. The one brand isn't trying to be all things for all people, but providing a product (THEIR product) for the market niche that wants the flavor profile they are known for (that has come through their traditional distilling and bottling).

Good question, @mohler. A lot of folks feel much the same as you—some are even downright resentful of the wide selection, which seems a little strange to me. My introduction to Bruichladdich was their "Peat" expression, which I reviewed here: connosr.com/reviews/bruichladdich/…

There are several other popular ones, however, including "Rocks" (connosr.com/reviews/bruichladdich/…), and the standard expressions, such as the 12 year-old. Do you have a sense of what you're looking for?

mohler:

Based on what I see in your whisky cabinet and your "likes," I'd suggest Infinity [3], a little peat and lots of character, or the 1992 Sherry Edition Pedro Ximinez 17 years old to satisfy your sweet tooth. Another, if you can still find it, would be Octomore 02.2 Orpheus for the sweet and peat.

Most of the bottlings that are currently being released by Bruichladdich are going to be limited runs. The distillery was only reopened in 2001 and the reason you don't really see any core bottlings is because they don't really exist yet (current stocks haven't really matured yet). Aside from the 2001 Ressurection, and the Laddie Classic everything else Bruichladdich is currently releasing was distilled prior to the distillery being closed in 1994 and is going to run out. To me this kind of makes Bruichladdich a fun distillery to start following as you're going to be able to get in at the beginning of this new era under Jim McEwan. So. Where to start? Definitely the bottles I mentioned before as they are going to give you a better idea of the house style going forward. Also, even though Bruichladdich is an Islay distillery, don't look for it to be a peat bomb. Most of their stuff is actually rather light on the smokey/peatiness (aside from the obvious Bruichladdich Peat). All of the heavy peated stuff is being released under the Octomore and Port Charlotte names.

Ok, that explains a LOT! Thanks for synthesizing that information for me! I kinda knew about the distilleries re-opening, but I never put two and two together!

I was kind of aware of the the fact that there were old casks that are getting bottled up & sold which is interesting. Thanks for the suggestions, I'll give some of that a shot.

I've tried a few at various whisky shows so I have an idea but I'm going to dive in & check it out.

@mohler Let us know how you get on - anything that helps steer our way through the Bruichladdich catalogue is more than welcome!

It appears you like lots of flavor. Try Bruichladdich Infinity. I like all things Islay and Bruichladdich is The Light Islay... And Infinity is Bruichladdich to 11. You won't be disappointed!

I would start with their standard 10 YO with the blue/green label. You can use this to get an idea of Bruichladdich's basic flavor profile. Then you have a solid base to compare and contrast how their more exoctic offerings differ and perhaps gain a deeper appreciation (or dislike) of them.

What's so confusing?? Start with the 12yo, it's great. I started with a cask strength Douglas Laing bottling that was fantastic. The 12yo is great too. I love the lingering saltiness that I get sometimes with Bruichladdich. Another one to check out is the 16yo First Growth. I've only tried the series A, and think it's pretty great. Finally I have some Organic Bruichladdich on order, that has been getting great reviews.

The new 10 year is now apparantly out.. it is expected to be their first standard continuously available malt. Mikelrtx's explanation is right on the money, with the exception that some of the whiskies bottled since (IIRC)at least '06 have contained new Whisky. Jim McEwan and his team have done a fantastic job creating really interesting whiskies, while many of them have been not to my taste none that I have tried have been sub-standard. If you are confused about which to try their website offers quite good tasting notes, I would suggest that you make a note of what is available to you at your local liquor outlet then look to their site.

@Andrew Sweet, I'm in London so there's a whole wealth of laddie on the shelves round here. That's part of the problem.

I think my issue is that I want it all but I'm just going to have to bite the bullet & pick one.

I'll let you all know where I start.