The Port Charlotte 10 year old is a heavily peated offering (40+ ppm) from Bruichlladich Distillery on Islay. It was launched in 2018, and has rapidly become a firm favourite amongst the peaty geeks.
There was actually a distillery called Port Charlotte. Started in the late 1820s – following the update of tax regulations for the whisky industry – the distillery was named after the mother of the founder, Colin Campbell. He also built a village of the same name.
As with many distilleries, Port Charlotte was eventually mothballed. Bruichladdich has also struggled over the decades. And although its brands have a massive audience today, it was only brought back to life in the year 2001.
How popular is the 10 Year Old? Ralfy, one of the premier vloggers, crowned this his whisky of the year about 2 years back. Shane from Whisky Lock gave a full review only this week. The prime reason for all the interest is that you can trust what this distillery tells you. They don’t cheat you with crummy casks.
- All the barley is Scottish.
- They openly state non-coloured and non chill filtered.
- Dig further and you can learn that the cask breakdown is first fill ex-bourbon casks (65%), second fill bourbon casks (10%) and second fill French wine casks (25%).
- The price, while not the cheapest, is reasonable.
And if you are looking for some extra geekiness, it is a most unusual bottle – with the cork giving an extra loud ‘pop’. (Childish and geekish together). After all, it is 50% ABV.
I have only had a neck pour so far, but………….
Nose: Citrus fruits, dark plums, and you cannot miss the peat.
Palate: Rich tropical fruits, a touch sweet – maybe vanilla, and a tad oily but not like Laphroaig. The peat is not overwhelming.
Finish: A pleasure to let it linger.
Would I buy it again> I stress that this was a neck pour and the liquid needs time to settle. Adding water did not help me. However, I have the distinct impression that I am going to enjoy my time with this bottle.
(Caption credit: Malt Whisky Reviews)
