Organic Barley

Nose - Malted barley, melon, peach and fresh apricot. Opens with notes of rich honey, lemon meringue and floral notes of gorse and heather. Wood, vanilla and caramel and pastry notes are well balanced with the intensity of the fruit. Fragrances of pear, apple and redcurrant still evoke the fresh green fruit of the spirit.

Taste - Sweet peardrops , vanilla fudge, chocolate and marzipan at first. No aggression here, just well-integrated flavours and a round, smooth texture. The oak and malt notes complement each other so well overlapping with toasted rye bread, buttery popcorn and fresh oak, vanilla fudge and a smooth caramel fusion. The organic barley seems to give more fruit from the distillation and a more viscous texture that delights the olfactory senses.

Finish - Sweet citrus, lemon drops, come through nicely on the finish and a slight char from the oak gives depth. The finish is more marine, a little briny alongside the oak and malt which works beautifully.

Character - Elegance, richness and well-defined Bruichladdich DNA. The depth of flavour comes from the malt and its transformation through the alchemy of distillation. The spirit is pure and fresh, the oak rich and polished, and the passage of time, the combination of great oak, superb barley and slow distillation is a stunning exploration of the fundamentals of whisky making.

The whisky we make from Mid Coul organic barley reflects the complex natural flavours of the landscape. Farmer William Rose refuses to use herbicides, pesticides and artificial fertilisers. Crop rotation is the key. Our barley must in turn enter a seven-year farming cycle that also produces cattle, sheep, oats, beans, grass, carrots, market gardening and a megawatt of organic electricity. Respect for the land, soil and climate is nurtured by a deep and authentic understanding of the terroir and the results are pure Bruichladdich.

The organic barley for this single malt was grown on Mid Coul Farms in Inverness, Scotland. It is part of a seven-year rotation of organic cattle, sheep, oats, beans, grass, carrots and market gardening. Rejecting the use of herbicides, pesticides and artificial fertilisers, farmer William Rose has opted for high technology to make his organic business profitable in the 21st century.

Mid Coul is a fascinating and dynamic place, proudly stating that: "Everyone on the farm is constantly striving to ensure that the land is managed in the best possible way, both economically and environmentally."

If we are to maintain our way of life in the long term, it will surely be farms like this that lead the way in really tackling sustainability and minimising inputs of petrochemical-based fertilisers, herbicides, pesticides and fungicides.

WHISKYSCOTCH SCOTCH ISLAY SIMPLE UNPEE

- DISTILLED FROM ORGANIC BARLEY, GROWN AND HARVESTED ON MID COUL FARMS IN 2009 FOR 2010 DISTILLATION

- MATURED IN AMERICAN EX-BOURBON OAK CASES FOR A MINIMUM OF 8 YEARS

- Bottles filtered without colouring and 50% Islay untainted.

- ACCREDITED WITH ORGANIC CERTIFICATION FROM THE UK BIODYNAMIC ASSOCIATION