The Whisky Jury released this Royal Brackla 2008 for the 10th anniversary of Wine4You, one of his loyal retailers.
The label tells us this was a low fill cask – it had been leaking so these 58 bottles is all there was left inside. Usually not something bottlers are happy about, but if TWJ decides to bottle it, it should be far from undrinkable.
Royal Brackla 15 yo 2008 (50,5%, The Whisky Jury for Wine4You 2024, refill hogshead #6784, 58 btl.)
Nose: seems older than it actually is. There’s a nice fruity layer (yellow plums, sweet lemon candy and pears) along with a subtle chalky touch and some beehive notes. Honeysuckle and a little hay. Then it becomes even rounder and slightly more tropical, on bananas and papaya.
Mouth: still this round mix of ripe fruits and sweet oak, with white grapes, peaches, oranges and bananas. A dollop of honey. Quite creamy at first, but mid-palate the tangy side returns, with some grapefruit and chalk. Green leaves, matcha and hints of liquorice wood. Also lemon peels and gooseberries.
Finish: quite long, on chalky notes, white pepper and citrus zest, with this grassy side and lingering white fruits.
Quite a vibrant whisky, mixing sweet and luscious fruits with a tangy green side. The kind of complexity I wasn’t expecting from Brackla at this age. Nice selection work. Exclusive to Wine4You.