In a wood in Bridgend, tucked away off the road, there is a damp, stone monument encrusted in a vibrant orange lichen there is a grave. Scrape away the slab’s grass covering, and there is the engraved name: George Montgomery, Distiller at Octomore.

Octomore farm sits on a commanding position on a hill over looking the village of Port Charlotte near Bruichladdich. There are dramatic views over the whole island, away to the Northern Irish coast twenty-five miles away, around to the Paps of Jura. A peaceful place with a tragic story.

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Many comment on our vivid and vibrant blue/green colour (how could you miss it?), and there are many theories as to where it came from. It tends to be a “love it or hate it” colour – which is very Bruichladdich in itself!

The latest to pose the question is the peakperspective.com blog who comment on the origins and purpose of our beguiling “funky not-quite-blue-not-quite-green color”. Thanks peakperspective, and allow us to shed some light.

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In the 49th year of the club's existence, local rugby club Helensburgh RFC, capped a hugely successful 'Double Championship winning season' with victory at Murrayfield, in the 2012 RBS National Bowl final.

The club's first ever 'Treble' coming just one season ahead of the 50th year celebrations was perfectly timed.  Helensburgh beat Dunbar 13-7 in the final to be crowned 2012 RBS National Bowl Champions.

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The 2012 ploughing has now largely been completed by the Islay farmers who are growing barley for Bruichladdich this year. There is still lots to do however and some of the fields are being prepared before being sown with seed.

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The French have a problem with Bruichladdich. To be more specific, with the nom de plume "the laddie".

Whether it's a reflection of the French education system, the mesmerising influence of the kilt, or some deep-seated deviance, the French continually mistake laddie for lady, a confusion that could have deeply embarrassing results, particularly in Thailand.

The two words don't even look the same, let alone sound similar:

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The Laddie and Botanist gin were a great success at the Top Marques show in Montecarlo over the weekend.

Glamorous supercars, expensive powerboats, luxurious watches and the beau monde featured at this Monaco festival of excess on the Riviera.

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The Laddie 10 has won the best new whisky of 2012 at the Drammie Awards.

The Drammie Awards was the brainchild of blogger Kevin Erskine. As the unofficial voice of the whisky consumer, via his old website, the Scotchblog, Kevin created a 'people's choice' whisky awards, where the power of “recognition” was in the hands of the whisky consumer, rather than industry advertisers.

A breath of fresh air to the jaded palate of perpetual whisky competitions, The Drammies rapidly became well respected for integrity and impartiality. In 2011, after a brief sabbatical, Kevin joined For Whisky Lovers ensuring the Drammies would continue.

The 2012 competition began with readers of For Whiskey Lovers nominating their favourites in 15 categories.

Bruichladdich – the band! — Man, this is an easy one for me. Sex Pistols. Simple. Easy. Let’s move on.

Wait, you need more explanation? Ok, ok…

Back in 1976/77 few major bands had the look or (raw) impact on the music like the Sex Pistols. Rock was stagnating and Disco was becoming more popular. But the Sex Pistols burst upon the scene like a lion on new kill.

Compare this to Bruichladdich,

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These are the DIY bottlings available exclusively to visitors to the distillery.

A valinch, possibly from a Spanish term, is the name applied to a large, copper pipette used to take cask samples from whisky barrels.

Our view is if you have made the effort to get here to Islay then you deserve something just a little extra special.

Valinchs are by definition only ever at cask strength, from a single barrel, and selected by Jim for individuality. Each Valinch released has it’s own label and title, usually to commemorate a specific event.

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