Designing Octomore Polyphonic

There’s a symphonic art to the making of whisky. When done with care, the composer creates a multi-sensorial piece by blending unrelated elements. Bringing together not just grain, water, yeast, and wood, but also time, human experience, and a sense of place, the Master Distiller creates a harmonious, transcendent experience. These skills are perhaps most finely tested when the elements at hand are powerful, complex, and limited in quantity. 

Last year’s Masterclass included a tasting of one of the very first distillations of Octomore, which stirred the creative musings of Head Distiller Adam Hannett. The idea of a “Greatest Hits of Octomore” was born.  

“The concept of Polyphonic is really interesting. It’s a nice look back at some of the things we’ve done in the past. You’ve got to know where you’re coming from to know where you’re going,” Adam muses. “One of the things I love about it is taking the chance to look back, take stock, and look to the future of what Octomore could be – adding that other dimension of knowledge.” 

The idea was to artfully unite snapshots of the greatest Octomore casks, only this would be Octomore plus additional age. Like taking the multifaceted alter egos of Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, Halloween Jack, the Thin White Duke, and The Blind Prophet from over the years and bringing them together in the complete form of masterful artist David Bowie.

The final cuvée took months of mental stewing and sampling. As with most artists, Adam allowed the idea for his next creation to simmer for some months until the vision became clear.  

“One of the discoveries came when I was looking through some of the distillery production files from 2007. In the mashing and fermentation sheets there was this Octomore-grown barley that was used to make Octomore. We’d always assumed the 2009 was the first time we used Octomore Islay-grown barley, but it turns out there was a small parcel of Octomore-grown barley in the 2007 – that was the very first one we did. For whatever reason, it hadn’t been recorded. That was quite cool, so we thought well, let’s build something around that.”

Ultimately, Adam chose Octomore spirits from various distillations, and cask types, including Octomore Event Horizon, the 6.3, 8.2, and 8.4 editions, along with two never-before-released single casks: a first-fill Grenache, and a second-fill Sauternes.

The peat levels of the Polyphonic components run the gamut from 162.6 to a stratospheric 258 PPM. The influence of time has softened the spirit, but true to Octomore, the peat is far from shy. "I’m reminded of earthy bonfires of dried leaves and autumnal pastries: warming and sweet with streaks of spice. That Islay influence of minerality and sea spray brings a freshness to the finish of seasoned oak and elegant peat smoke."

“You’d think the peat and cask would be too much – that it would calm down and become less interesting than that vibrant, exciting Octomore,” says Adam. “But it actually retains that delicate clarity and develops subtle layers of complexity. It’s a different take on Octomore – a different personality.”

Creating a cuvée of so many outstanding Octomore casks is an endeavour that many would relish. For Adam, the most interesting part was going back to explore casks and see how they’ve changed years after they’d been bottled. “With [this] Octomore you have that extra dimension of time in those casks that’s really, really interesting to see. It’s more complex...the vibrancy is there in a different kind of way. It’s incredibly fresh. Thinking about how much the Octomore enthusiasts are going to receive this superstar blend has been almost as much fun as making it.” 

Such an iconic Octomore release, needed an equally outstanding vessel. Our Islay-born design expert, Dan Roy, brought the concept of Polyphonic to life on the bottle.

Dan produced a retro neon visualisation of Octomore farm, inspired by pioneering video games, films, and remix albums of the '80s. He added a tractor, reminiscent of those he grew up around, linking the scene to Bruichladdich’s whisky production; land and dram united.

“This bottling is like a greatest hits album – it’s made up of the vintage Octomore products we have previously released,” says Dan. “The landscape and the tractor symbolise our connection to the land and the production of whisky on Islay. Over the years those whiskies develop and evolve, as we simultaneously distil new creations. The Octomore Polyphonic is a cuvée that includes many whiskies in a polyphonic composition. Think of the song Frère Jacques: the harmony comes from the overlapping of the same melody but out of time.” 

Polyphony is both a musical and literary term. As a literary concept, it refers to a narrative structure that includes a diversity of simultaneous points of view, all equally valid. So rather than viewing truth as a single authoritative voice, independent of the person who states it, polyphony views it as being dynamic and emerging from the interaction of multiple independent voices. 

“Polyphony is an open-ended, continuous dialogue – not an authoritative, finalised statement,” Dan explains. “Octomore Polyphonic is the representation of this dialogue in liquid form.” 

And you thought design was just about making visually appealing packaging! We can’t help but wonder what doors and future possibilities Octomore Polyphonic opens. When asked if the creative process inspired new ideas, Adam responded, “Absolutely!”. 

Of course, those are all top secret for now. Until then, lovers of Octomore past, present, and future can revel in Polyphonic's spirit of possibility.