Bruichladdich Rocks

Directly from the Website of Bruichladdich, "A bracing, light and floral dram that expresses both the marine top-notes of classic Bruichladdich spirit and master distiller Jim McEwan’s lifetime experience."

I wouldn't necessarily agree with the "Floral" Dram description, its definitely there but still a very fine Malt indeed. It was a surprising experience for sure. it says "unpeated" on the label but there is just a hint on both the nose and palate of very very light smoky peat.

Very Yeasty. In the BEST possible sense. such a unique chewy Yeasty dram. I am not an easy to please, though not overtly stingy Malt drinker but when something hits just right, by GOLLY, it hits hard.

Bruichladdich has such a solid base and i am always glad to experience whats new at the distillery....back to the drink....

Its Light on the Nose to me. Nothing too intense. I wish it was more memorable honestly. YEAST! Chocolate on the nose, with a hint of wine. Palate wise??

As far as tasting notes go, i am going to focus on the Chocolate and the Yeast, its really predominate, like a Biscuit(dinner roll). Some Grapes, OAK, and a light pepper. Its not very Islay to me, but its not a bad thing. Islay is my favorite region(arguably most peoples favorite region) but it uniquely independent.

It is great on arrival, with a solid Barley finish.

I strongly recommend this Whiskey and am equally surprised this has not received higher marks.

Very Solid Dram. 2 Teaspoons of water, no ice. let it open up and when you first sip it, CHEW it. You will thank me later.

Color: apricot.

Nose: Not your typical Islay! Quite malty. Grainy cereal notes with a hint of sweet brown sugar and a whisp of something tart like pomegranate seeds. The light touch of peat hovers just below the surface.

Body: full bodied and thick.

Palate: chocolate malt, cinnamon candies, and red wine.

Finish: Big but short. There's a blast of pepper and smoke, but then it is gone, followed by the slow, lingering licorice after-taste of cough syrup.

I picked this one up for two reasons: 1) a video I saw about the distillery's eco-friendly methods and 2) the package design, which is beautiful. But to be honest, for the price, I thought this was a wonderful little whisky. Not what I would normally grab when I long for Islay, but this is a unique stand-in for several Speyside whiskies. Definitely worth a venture.

Thanks to @MarsViolet for the reviewed sample.

Nose: acrid citric antiseptic, like strong mouth wash, a little sour, brine, followed by malt and actually a bit of perfume of roses, which seems strangely out of place with the other flavours. Hints of old leather and a bit of wet hay. Any peat or smoke in the nose is quite mild. Overall, odd, and not too pleasant. Additional air morphs this into a slightly floral grassy maltiness, better than at first. Water brings out the wine flavours and subdues the weirdness. With ice, citrus seems to dominate the nose

Taste: sweet; brine springs forth in strong evidence, leather and grass remain, peat is much more noticeable on the palate than in the nose. A strong and deep unrefined fruitiness, like marc, asserts itself, seeming to be from wine maturation. The flavours are strong but not refined. This is a hearty sort of beverage. Water once again brings out wine and malt. Reasonably pleasant this way. With ice, deep wine and wood flavours become strongest

Finish: rather long, sour, and finishes on wine and malt. With water, the wine flavours do a slow fade out. With ice, there is a combination of a little citrus, a little grass, a little malt, and a little wine

Balance: Bruichladdich Rocks is an entertaining chameleon. It is also quite unrefined, albeit hearty. "Balance" is not a word I would use to describe these odd, multiple, and morphing flavours

You can certainly enjoy this malt, but in order to do so you have to be in the mood to ride an earthy unrefined rollercoaster

OR, you could just nail down its manifestation by drinking it with water, or, alternately, with ice

Simple and nice expression. Young.

Nose: candy, apple pie, bit of peat Palate: toffee, bit of spices, cocoa, bit of peat Finish: coffee, chocolate, toffee, peat

Nose: Quite simple, a range of different jams, red fruits, slight maltyness and saltyness

Palate: Jams again, red fruits (stawberry's, Rassberrys ect.), hints of pepper, cooked vinilla.

Finish: Basically the same as the palate, fades to a vinilla sweetness.

Very simple but very nice. Cheep as well. I think I had the 2nd batch of this bottling.

Nose: Lemon peel, grape juice, satsumas, mint syrup, bleach. A little dirty, like a beach. There's also a certain artificial fruit flavor that I associate with lollipops, gummy candies, etc.

Taste: A bit briny, sea air. Quite maritime in nature, however, the wine finish seems to have "candy-coated" this one (although this isn't a particularly sweet whisky).

Finish: I'm fairly certain there is at least a little bit of peat in this. Brine comes out with a bit of earthy tobacco.

Overall, this isn't a bad whisky, it just seems that whenever I look over my bottles, I never want to drink it. Kind of disappointing because my first impressions of it were good, however, the more time I spent with it, the more my enthusiasm for it faded.

This must be one of the best value malts on the market. It's apparantly un-peated but its so rich and full on the palate that you wouldn't know it. I absolutely love it. Extra points for the price, it's tastes way more expensive that it costs.

Nose - Marshmallow, oak, figs, liquorice, vanilla and spice. Among the most rewarding and complex noses I've tried so far.

Palate - Teacakes, berries and old oak. Oily and some sea salt. Very rich and fulfilling.

Finish - Medium long, slightly medicinal with lots of spice and wood. There is some smoke in there which suggests its peated though the label says no.

Suppose that you would like something more interesting and assertive than a Speyside, but less overwhelming than tar in a bonfire. Well, Bruichladdich ROCKS is one of my favorite go-to, all-rounder malts.

ROCKS is part of the distiller’s Multi Vintage Malts seriies … per the distiller: A range of Designer Malts masterfully tailored by Jim McEwan for specific palates. From the distiller’s website, it appears that I am reviewing the “Rocks New” bottling, with the gray-scale/silver label. ROCKS has no age statement, and it is concocted from a range of several vintages, malting levels and cask types. Moreover, the component vintages are mixed together, and then further matured in French red wine casks.

The bottle label states that ROCKS is an unpeated Islay single malt with elegance and sophistication … and that it is a multi-dimensional bottling. I do agree with all of the distiller’s adjectives, but having so many other unpeated malts, if I had read the “unpeated” part in the label first, I might not have acquired it. But somehow my senses pick up an elegant and desirable balance of peat/smoke as one of the dimensions. And alas, the distiller’s website agrees with me, and claims that ROCKS is lighted peated. So stick to your noses and palates folks !

Bruichladdich bottles many expressions at 46%, which I feel adds to their potency, excitement and robustness. Most of my favorite go-to malts are bottled at 46%. ROCKS is also un-colored and un-chill-filtered, which adds a friendly dimension to it all. No water was added for this tasting.

Bottle Nose: Fairly potent deep sweetness, glue, little smokiness … very alluring.

Glass Nose: Exciting and pungent medicinal brininess and candy … maybe a bit of fruit … my kind of aroma for this type of mid-range malt … gives me that illusion of a Scottich sea.

Palate: Lively rush of deep sweet tangy, gluey, salty, then nuts and fruit, maybe a little caramel, followed by a good deal of mild almond smokiness. Very complex and balanced..

Finish: Warm medium tangy finish with a good-quality glue, and maybe cookies & vanilla, followed by a lasting aftertaste of pleasant almond smokiness.

Conclusion: ROCKS is everything I really like in medium-smoky, exciting single malt: a well-done balance of sweet effervescent tanginess and saltiness, infused with a light amount of pleasant and mild smoke. Currently I have found only three other malts in this category … can the reader think of some others ?

I am anticipating sampling the other expressions in this series, such as the WAVES, PEAT and Infinity. WAVES is said to be more highly peated, but I wonder if PEAT gets too close to the fire … at least for this mid-range category :-)

Although ROCKS would likely not be appreciated by a malty neophyte (maltyphyte?), it is a highly satisfying mid-range malt for the more seasoned explorer.

Rating 92, in this assumed category.