THE BLACK ART SOLDIERS ON

 BRUICHLADDICH’S THE BLACK ART SERIES

The year 1994 was the end of the line for the old Bruichladdich. The distillery was mothballed that black year due to a lack of demand for single malts that seems almost inconceivable today. Bruichladdich wouldn’t reopen until 2001 when Jim McEwan & Co. modernised the brand and started making the “Laddie” beloved by today’s Scotch enthusiasts. Adam Hannett, McEwan's successor, continues in the same mould.

For a distillery that prides itself on transparency and traceability, it’s almost strange that one of its flagship expressions is shrouded in mystery. But for a distillery as open as Bruichladdich, I don’t mind cutting them some slack. I’m talking about the Bruichladdich Black Art Series, now in its tenth edition.

The first-ever Black Art was released in 2009 and from there the legend of the series was built. I’m personally not extremely familiar with the range, but I’ve generally enjoyed the editions I’ve tried, such as the Black Art 7.1 from a couple of years ago. However, I’ve seen some complaining online that the quality of the Black Art bottlings has dipped ever since current Head Distiller Adam Hannett took over from Islay legend Jim McEwan. Give such loose talk a miss.

Seeing as I’ve never tried any of them head-to-head and it has been ages since I’ve tasted one of the first four editions created by Jim McEwan, I can’t attest to that. And while I know not to put too much stock into the ratings on Whiskybase, they certainly don’t seem to corroborate a perceived decline. On the contrary, one of the lesser-rated editions is the first Black Art. Usually, whisky drinkers tend to overvalue earlier releases, so that’s most surprising.

THE BLACK ART 1994: THE EIGHTH EDITION

Black Art is an ongoing series of limited-edition releases from Bruichladdich—that much we know. Beyond that, and the ages of the whiskies, we don’t know a whole lot. And that’s how its master distillers (Jim McEwan, who was succeeded by Adam Hannett) wanted it. Nothing is revealed about how these whiskies were matured or in what kind of casks they were finished. What matters, they say, is how they taste. And this eighth edition of Black Art tastes delicious.

Black Art 1994 straddles two eras of Bruichladdich. It was distilled and laid down the year the distillery ceased production, not to resume until 2001 when Jim McEwan made it the iconoclastic and groundbreaking distillery it remains today. While Black Art plays up the mystery of its cask-ageing, it doesn’t taste that mysterious. It’s certainly more restrained than the brand’s out-there offerings like Octomore and Port Charlotte. But all the same, it’s a beautifully executed whisky.

For a cask-strength expression, Edition 8.1 has a relatively low proof and is quite soft on the palate, as well. But it’s still quite flavourful, with ex-bourbon, sherry and possibly port or wine casks evident in the flavour profile. A whisky of this age and rarity (to say nothing of its price) is not meant for mixing, although it would likely make a lovely cocktail. Water and ice are also not necessary or recommended. It’s excellent as-is.

Black Art 8.1 is not what you might expect from an Islay whisky—it’s unpeated—or specifically, a Bruichladdich, as it’s relatively restrained. But taken on its own terms, it delivers and then some.

For whisky fans who may find more experimental Bruichladdich expressions like Bere Barley or Octomore a little too weird, Black Art is a single malt in the classic style. It is proof that Islay distilleries can do more than make peaty smoke bombs. This is an unpeated gem that will appeal to fans of Highland and Speyside malts.

Black Art plays up the mystery of its cask ageing, but it doesn’t taste too off-the-beaten-path, which may disappoint some followers who are expecting the unexpected. The price is quite high for a whisky of this age and quality, even in an era of skyrocketing prices for aged single malts.

CLASSIFICATION: SINGLE MALT SCOTCH
COMPANY: REMY COINTREAU
DISTILLERY: BRUICHLADDICH
CASK: UNDISCLOSED
PHENOL LEVEL: 0 PARTS PER MILLION
RELEASED: 2020; LIMITED TO 12,000 BOTTLES
BOTTLING: UNCHILL-FILTERED & COLOUR FREE BRUICHLADDICH DISTILLERY ON ISLAY
PROOF: 79° (45.1% ABV) (PROOF USA: 90.2)
AGE: 26 YEARS
MSRP: $450

Tasting Notes

Colour: Medium copper—many scotches contain caramel colouring to darken their hue, but Bruichladdich is not among them. The colour here comes straight from the cask.

Nose: It’s rich and fruity on the first whiff. Is it a wine-cask finish? But then a maritime salinity comes in which must be from sherry cask ageing, right? The distillery isn’t saying.

Palate: A rich, rounded fruitiness reminiscent of port casks evolves into a dry, nutty salinity with candied-orange overtones. Vanilla and caramel indicate time in ex-bourbon casks, but there’s definitely a pronounced sherry presence here. Exactly how much, of course, is known only to Bruichladdich’s master distiller, and he’s not telling.

Finish: It’s very long, dry and somewhat oaky, but surprisingly gentle considering it’s spent more than a quarter-century in wood.

For a brand known for delivering way-out whiskies, Black Art 8.1 is quite reserved and gentle—and expensive. As some of the last whisky distilled before the distillery was closed for several years and then sold, it’s historically significant. It’s also an excellent aged single malt, helping to justify the cost.

THE BLACK ART 1992: THE NINTH EDITION 09.1

In an era when efficiency was promoted over quality, this distillery was considered irredeemably old-fashioned. The single malt produced before closure in 1994 now equates to less than 1% of all the ‘pre-renaissance’ whisky still maturing in their warehouses. Their oldest spirits have become some of our rarest and most treasured. Ensuring the eloquent work of our predecessors is given the closest attention, this finite 1992 vintage has been nurtured on its 29-year journey from cask to cask by Head Distillery, Adam Hannett. Matured in unrivalled quality oak, this unpeated spirit’s recipe is held in absolute secret – as is customary with every Black Art edition before it. What one does know about the 9th edition is that their most alchemic single malt is the oldest ever. This is the quintessential Black Art: Edition 09.1.

All the single malts used to create this Black Art were distilled in or before 1992, which means it dates back to before the distillery closed in 1994. And that is quite special because Bruichladdich has even less than 1per cent left of this older stock.  

FOR THIS EDITION OF BLACK ART, INSPIRATION WAS TAKEN FROM THE GROUNDWORK DONE IN CREATING THE FIRST EDITIONS OF THIS SERIES, WHERE THERE WAS A RELENTLESS PURSUIT TO LAYER FLAVOUR.             ADAM HANNETT HEAD DISTILLER

CLASSIFICATION: UNPEATED ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH
COMPANY: REMY COINTREAU
DISTILLERY: BRUICHLADDICH
CASK: UNDISCLOSED
VINTAGE/AGE: 1992 VINTAGE, 29 AGED YEARS
RELEASE: 2021
PHENOL LEVEL: 0 PARTS PER MILLION
PROOF: 77.1° USA PROOF 88.2%  44.1% ABV
AGE: 29 YEARS
BOTTLING: UNCHILL-FILTERED & COLOUR FREE BRUICHLADDICH DISTILLERY ON ISLAY       MSRP: $1050

TASTING NOTES

COLOUR - Russet.

NOSE - Simply stunning. Tropical fruit, coconut, tobacco, oak spices and toasted pine needles weave an intricate web of aromas. With a bit of time, this beautiful whisky opens up to waves of mango, honey-drizzled melon, warm orange zest, grilled pineapple and ripe summer strawberries. It’s mouth-wateringly succulent and fruity - the gentle oak offering coconut, ginger, buttery shortbread, vanilla custard and hints of tobacco.

PALATE - The viscosity and depth of this dram are out of this world; the oak notes of tobacco and brown sugar, chocolate and coconut provide the base for all those wonderful fruit combinations to shine. A drop of water and a second sip further explores the woven layers of this remarkable whisky.

FINISH - The succulent fruit sweetness lasts for an age on the palate, apricot, mango and baked banana, toasted sweet oak, honey and vanilla – you just don’t want it to end.

CHARACTER - With this edition of Black Art, inspiration was taken from the groundwork done in creating the first editions of this series, where there was a relentless pursuit to layer flavour. This whisky would rest in some of the finest casks, adding a delicate layer of fruit before it was moved on again. Carefully waiting, watching and tasting, looking to chart new directions with each new cask used until finally arriving at a point of perfection.

Not a shy whisky by any means. But an explosion of flavours, which work really well together. It’s a very good and complex single malt that is nicely layered and balanced. Really well done.

BRUICHLADDICH: BLACK ART  EDITION 10.1

The tenth edition of this limited edition series, Black Art Edition 10 encapsulates the enigmatic alchemy of whisky making; with a reliance on nature, craftsmanship and the passing of time. The barley and cask types remain a mystery, with the final recipe undisclosed.

FROM THE DARKNESS OF THE WAREHOUSE    

Whisky making is an ancient art, one that has intrigued and captivated for centuries. Black Art 10 is a testament to this elusive mastery.

Pulling exclusively from Bruichladdich Distillery pre-renaissance casks which have been patiently maturing on our island home for almost three decades, this finite single malt is secretly created by their Head Distiller, Adam Hannett. What happens inside each cask, under the darkness of the warehouse, remains a mystery.

With their full trust, Adam is given complete creative freedom to create this incredible whisky. With no rules and no restrictions, Black Art Edition 10.1 is unique and unrepeatable. A chance to experiment and push the boundaries of possibility, only Adam knows what has gone into crafting the precious 29-year-old single malt.

Unpeated and matured in the finest quality oak, this tenth edition of Black Art is a captivating marriage of faith and ingenuity.

The new Bruichladdich Black Art 10.1 are casks from 1993 before the distillery was temporarily closed. The Black Art is bottled in natural colour and at cask strength without chill filtration. Bruichladdich Black Art 10.1 offers an alcohol strength of 45.1% ABV and is available online at the distillery shop and also at spirits specialist shops.

Made with creative freedom, Bruichladdich has been releasing the Black Art bottlings for 10 years now. It is the sixth edition of the Black Art that Adam Hannett, Head Distiller at Bruichladdich Distillery, has created.

He says: "The creative freedom I have when creating this single malt is a privilege. It allows me to take risks and explore the realms of possibility. Whisky making relies on the harmonious marriage between cask and spirit, and Black Art 10 is a celebration of the extraordinary things that can happen when we abandon the detail and simply appreciate and enjoy the flavour.”

PRODUCER’S TASTING NOTES

CHARACTER: Depth, complexity, knowledge and balance. The confidence and intuition used to guide this spirit is handed from one generation of distillers to the next. The choices made through years of maturation with casks of unrivalled provenance uniquely shape each expression of Black Art, never to be repeated.

COLOUR: Mahogany

NOSE: Warm and inviting, a bright fruity note welcomes you. The fragrant toasted oak brings chocolate praline, cedar, leather and subtle hints of clove and nutmeg, before moving to fruit notes of sweet apricot jam, ripe melon, dark cherries and blackcurrants. There is a light touch of citrus with lemon zest and gooseberries dipped in honey, with delicate floral notes of geranium and honeysuckle balanced with a hint of iodine and leather.

PALATE: Orange barley sugars, ginger nut biscuits and lemon meringue pie are followed by sweet apricot jam and marzipan. The toasted oak brings smooth chocolate and vanilla notes, beautifully complemented with syrupy fruit, raisins, plum and melon. Over time, iodine and a hint of coconut come through, with delicate oak spices of warming ginger and cinnamon. A velvet texture, the depth and balance of this single malt glides across the palate.

FINISH: Tablet and smooth fudge bring a softness to the finish, while ripe soft fruits, subtle tobacco and a hint of ginger linger.

CLASSIFICATION: UNPEATED ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH
DISTILLERY: BRUICHLADDICH
CASK:UNDISCLOSED
VINTAGE/AGE:1993 VINTAGE, 29 YO
RELEASE: 2022
PHENOL LEVEL: 0 PARTS PER MILLION
PROOF: 78.5°; USA PROOF 90.2% 45.1% ABV
BOTTLING: UNCHILL-FILTERED & COLOUR FREE AT BRUICHLADDICH DISTILLERY ON ISLAY
MSRP: $450

ADAM HANNETT ANSWERS QUERIES

BRUICHLADDICH  BLACK ART - A CREATIVE STORM

What's The Story Behind How The Black Art Concept Started?

The Black Art concept was very much Jim McEwan’s. It was a vehicle for him, starting from ambition and the ability/freedom to explore the wood, to revel in the blending and the role of the cask in making whisky. Jim is a whisky legend who started out as a cooper. Even though he had been running distilleries and involved in everything, one of his great loves was maturation.

When he started at Bruichladdich Distillery, they were going into new territory with sourcing casks. They had the freedom and ability to start buying casks from some of the great chateaux in Bordeaux and around the world, using flavours and casks that hadn’t been used before.  The quality of the oak that was being used was absolutely phenomenal.

French oak is very different to American oak, which was 99.9% of what was used in the whisky industry then. Exploration and challenges have deep roots in the origins of the distillery and the origins of Black Art.  It was about trying new things and seeing where the flavour was going.

In my role, I know that when you take some Bruichladdich spirit that’s been maturing in a refill bourbon hogshead with a classic flavour, then you put it into a red wine with amazing French oak behind it, you start picking up all these amazing fruity, charry notes from the wine. Then this lovely structure and quality of the oak come through to help shape that spirit… You get something completely different! It’s a new lens of flavour. So many new things develop that you completely turn away from the previous maturation profile.

When Jim was blending these casks, he would transfer the whiskies into certain casks and keep adding, making all these layers of flavour, things people hadn’t tasted before. There was this creative storm going on, bringing all these flavours all together.

That was the concept of Black Art. The name idea came to him because somebody asked the question ‘Jim, what are you doing?’ ‘Can’t tell you, completely secret – just trust me’.

As a project, Black Art has a lovely perpetuity to it: it was started before you by your predecessor, and the casks you lay down now will be handled by your successor - how does it feel to be part of this legacy?

So the craft, the secrecy, it was like an opportunity to try things that people hadn’t done before. The more we said, ‘We’re not going to tell you, this is just what we do! You don’t need to know; you just need to enjoy it…”, the more freedom we had to look at the layers of flavour you could get from hundreds of different cask types. The editions follow a sort of instinct through all those different options. They have a similar story, same DNA, but each one is an unrepeatable, unique whisky.

For me that goes wider than Black Art; that’s what distilling is!

That’s one of the great things you very quickly realise when you first walk into a warehouse and start moving barrels that have been laid there, with dates on from before you were born.

For the stock we are laying down today, I won’t be the person putting that into a bottle.

Something that Jim always used to say, and I think I have always been aware of, is that your job is to look after the distillery for the next generation. Leave it in a better place than where you found it.

I look back at Jim and Duncan (McGillivray)… When they brought Bruichladdich back to life, everything was about building it back up. I can see now that they put as much hard work in as they could so that when Allan (Logan) and I took over those roles, we were in a better position. I see our jobs as the same thing. It’s about growing Bruichladdich, building it and putting in foundations to pass on to the next generation.

We have interesting challenges just now (I say interesting, but they are scary…). Sustainability concerns, and climate change, mean it’s critical to our job now how we think differently and evolve. How will we leave this distillery in a better place for future generations?

I do see that with Black Art, but it's wider than Black Art. That’s what distilling is. It’s time travel I suppose.

The Project seems to be A Blessing And A Curse: it’s one where you have complete creative freedom, but there’s also a pressure to make something incredible every time. How do you overcome these pressures?

I suppose I don’t really see it as pressure. What you have got to remember is that we are not just looking at that one moment? It goes from the barley that’s grown, to the way the spirit’s distilled, to the cask that we fill, the cask that we blend and re-cask… At each part of the process, it's being monitored to ensure it’s at its best, at every single point. So when I go to blend that Black Art, I’m not worried about anything. We have put the work in so I know that when I start that blending process, I’m starting with excellence.

For Black Art, I may start looking at the recipe seven or eight years before it ends up in a bottle, it could be longer.

It’s not something to worry about, but a lovely thing is you don’t know what you will end up with. There is experience and knowledge there to guide you along the way and you know what you want to try and aim for but you don’t know how that spirit’s going to work out until it's finished. You have got to take risks – no one ever did anything great from repeating the same old, same old; it’s about trying new things. That’s the DNA that’s been instilled in me, to try new things - it maybe comes quite naturally to the distillery as its what we have always known.

That creative freedom – if you feel pressured by that then you are probably in the wrong job! It should be a pleasure to have that creative freedom, to try new things and see what happens; that’s the essence of Black Art.