Our Concept and Experimental Whisky

We are not very good at sitting still at Bruichladdich. There is always a nagging suspicion that something magical might be just around the corner.

Concept Bruichladdich is our dedication to the spirit of folly and adventure, to creative exploration wherever and however it might manifest itself and to the whisky muse, wherever she may lead us.

This concept whisky, this experimental single malt, represents our journey into the effects of oak and casks, climate and maturation. Like many of the best ideas at Bruichladdich it is born from childlike curiosity.

We are fortunate that our head distiller Jim McEwan shares this impish quest to experiment, coupled with a lifetime of whisky know-how tucked up his sleeve.

Nobody knows how he makes his Black Art expressions, not one of us. Some say that in the dead of night he can be heard whispering to the stills and the casks, conjuring them from their loch-side slumberings to rise in mystical union.

Each cask, a unique vessel, a living, breathing entity, responds differently to the microclimate of its location and the effects of the briny air, the westerly winds, the draft through the door; they tease out the characteristics of the whisky over the years, decades.

What would happen if we bottled two identical casks of the same whisky, but from different parts of the warehouse? Would there be a difference? What happens if we take our elegant, floral bourbon matured spirit and leave for a few months, a few years longer in the finest casks from a French sweet wine chateau? What if we do the same with our heavily peated spirit?

So many questions, so much time. The art of the dram is a patient art.

We count ourselves as incredibly privileged to have the freedom to follow our inclinations wherever they may take us. We hope you will join us on this journey.