Port Charlotte 10 Year Old – Second Limited Edition

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Bruichladdich bottles 4 different range of whiskies at different peating levels : there’s the Bruichladdich line (which is unpeated, or very low peat) , the Port Charlotte range , which is medium ( ~40 ppm – or parts per millions – this is how peat levels are measured), the Lochindaal  Line, which we first encountered when I reviewed the Elements Of Islay – Ln1,  and of course the Octomore range, which is very heavily peated (100 ppm and up).  I am going to be taking a look at new-ish 10 year old expressions from 3 of the 4 lineups (there’s not an official Lochindaal bottling at the moment), and starting with the ‘middle’ peated line – the Port Charlotte 10. This edition features a Full term in first-fill bourbon, sherry, Tempranillo and French wine casks. Bottled at 50% alc. vol. using Islay Spring water. Heavily peated @ 40ppm. 18,000 individually numbered bottles.

Port Charlotte 10 Year Old – Second Limited Edition , 50% , £56 

Nose: quite sweet on entry with golden syrup, milk chocolate, Candied orange, some sherries fruits , with sweet smoke, and peat reek and some Soot on the second wave of sensation. hints of red grapefruit , banana and some red wine and more tangerine. A very nice sweeter sort of PC, with the right amount of reek/soot/smoke. gentler than I’d anticipated.
 
Palate: starts spicy and hot with pepper and chilly, then getting milder (as mild as you can expect from a 40 ppm whisky, yeah?) , with more vanillas sweetness,  chocolate, tar, maybe some cigar leaves, licorice, salty caramel, and more smoke , with a fruity touch , and a touch of wine tannins . 
 
Finish: Long and smoky, a touch of wine gums.

This is a very nice PC, quite rounded and sweet in addition to it being peaty and smoky, with the right amount of reek. seems the wine casks did tame the liquid, and added a nice touch of fruit. at 50% it’s surprisingly drinkable, and more-ish. A lovely dram for the cold winter nights.

Score: 85/100

 

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