Brora 30yr 2009 Whisky Review

Brora. One of the closed distilleries that has attained cult status. Have wanted to try from the day I heard whisky friends talking about it. A smoky highlander? Hell yeah.

Notes

Eye: Medium amber

Nose: Salty, waxy, vanilla cream with a spicy smoke element. Peat on this is just heaven. With time a smoky apple citrus nose develops. The smoke is not dissimilar to an Australian bush fire smell… could breath this in for hours.

Palate: Sweet on first contact. There it is.. waxy creamy smoky fruity wow. Mind blown. Hints of cooked green apples with a dash of lemon. Chew baby chew.

Finish: Oily and long. Surprising fresh malty notes ride this one out with the salt, smoke, fruit and wax. Superb mouthfeel.

Details

Distillery: Brora
Age: 30yr’s Old
Region: Highland
Bottler: Diageo
Limited: 856 of 2652
Distillation Date: 1979
Bottling Date: 2009
ABV: 53.2%

I bought myself two of these for my 30th birthday and I must say I’m glad I opened one. This is a truly brilliant whisky and I now know what all the fuss is about. I won’t be forgetting this one for a while. Will I buy it again? Probably not. If I can pick one up at auction, maybe, but the new official bottling’s are far out of my price range.

Interestingly this has some of the same notes as Clynelish in the fruit and wax department. I’ll review the Clynelish 14yr official bottling next but it is nice to know once all the Brora is gone I can still get close to that flavour, even if it is without the peat.

Music wise we have a song by Journey, because Journey are epic. Fits well as this Brora is nothing short of epic too. Enjoy.

Journey - Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)

Sláinte!