2011 Bruichladdich Port Charlotte PAC01 Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

"Another muscular, rich Port Charlotte, with a special mention for the gorgeous nose. " - whiskynotes.be

After Octomore, Port Charlotte is the most sought after label in Bruichladdich's portfolio. Both are heavily peated styles that don't require long maturations and both have rather obscure numbering systems associated with their titles. In the case of the latter, the letters typically stand for the type of cask used (e.g.- PAC = Pauillac), while the numerals refer to the edition number. Most Port Charlottes are limited runs compared with Bruichladdich's core expressions. The whisky in question is an eight year old made from Concerto barley peated to 40 ppm and matured in first-fill American oak for six years before a two year stint in red wine casks from Pauillac (left bank Bordeaux – both first-fill and second-fill French oak casks). PAC01 first hit the European market in mid 2021, so we're going back in time.

Other reviews... This year's edition of the Port Charlotte Cask Exploration Series was aged in French oak red wine casks from Bordeaux's Pauillac region. Sweet peat on the nose, honey, sugared banana slices, vanilla flan, barley sugar, green apple, and fresh-cut grass. The palate offers charcoal, bonfire, and pepper spice, with water taming the peat and drawing out candied lemon, orange, apricot, sweet tea, and cinnamon spice. A fiery but serenely refined peat profile. 92 points - whiskyadvocate.com

Matured for 6-7 years in bourbon barrels then re-racked into ex-Pauillac red wine casks. Colour: gold. Nose: I actually find it extremely fresh and pure, all on wet rocks, seawater, sea spray, brine and then these softer notes of ink and hessian. Impressions of coal smoke and peat embers. Really lovely nose! With water: really doubles down on this impression of hessian, tarry rope, creel nets, ink and oily sheep wool. But still also quite saline and fresh. Mouth: a little more spicy encroachment from the French oak now, pickled onion Monster Munch (a delicacy, look it up!), sardines in olive oil, tar, embrocations, paprika. Ever so slightly unusual but still works I think. With water: water seems to brush aside these spicier oak tones and it's now more on green pepper, miso, smoked olive oil, tar, medical embrocations and a little plasticine. Finish: long, quite a lot of lemon oils, tar, caraway, iodine and pickling juices. Comments: I think the finishing here was done with a light touch and worked pretty well. There's no sense of overly-lopsided red wine sloshing about the place. Same quality as the Origins in my view. 87 points - whiskyfun.com

Notes from the producers... Nose - Lots of fresh, fruit aromas mingle with the dry peat smoke to entice you into the dram, from the oak comes spices - cloves, ginger and cassia, along with chocolate, toasted malt with toffee, brown sugar and delicate coconut and vanilla notes. Palate - As the first drop touches your tongue a wave of flavours sweep across the palate, the sweetness from the oak and malt lead, followed by smoke, citrus and dried fruit notes. Finish - The peat smoke comes through on the finish with a more medicinal phenol style. Coconut and floral notes waver and a saline marine element combine with the earthy smoke in the classic Port Charlotte style. The softness of the oak and the minerality of the spirit become wrapped in smoke, a familiar signature to this dram.