The 19-year-old whisky in release NO.11 was distilled by the Bruichladdich distillery in 1989 and was bottled by Direct Wines as part of their First Cask range. This 1989 whisky was distilled in a year which saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s government introduce the Poll Tax amid widespread protests, and the first release of the bestselling Nintendo Gameboy.

ABOUT THE BRUICHLADDICH DISTILLERY

Located on the shores of Loch Indaal, a sea loch on the western part of Islay, the Bruichladdich distillery was built in 1881 by the Harvey brothers a Glasgow-based family of distillers who owned the Dundashill and Yorker grain whisky distilleries. As with virtually every Scottish distillery established in the late Victorian period the Bruichladdich distillery initially existed to provide malt for blending, originally producing peated malts to satisfy the demand of Glasgow benders.

Over the years the Bruichladdich distillery’s style would shift to meet the blenders needs, and in contrast to the heavily peated Islay whiskies produced by Ardbeg, Lagavulin and Laphroaig the distillery would become renowned for its output of an unpeated Islay malt displaying a gentler fresh and mildly floral character. The Harveys operated the Bruichladdich distillery until 1929, when the distillery closed as a result of the interwar Depression. Although revived in 1936 and sold to Joseph Hobbs the owner of the Ben Nevis distillery in 1938, for the next thirty years the Bruichladdich distillery would see a succession of owners.

In 1968, the Bruichladdich distillery was bought by Invergordon Distillers, although impacted by a downturn in the whisky market the distillery would operate at reduced capacity throughout the 1980s. After Invergordon’s takeover by Whyte and Mackay Ltd in 1993 the Bruichladdich distillery was closed as surplus to requirements and allowed to fall into disrepair. Bruichladdich looked destined to become one of Scotland’s lost distilleries, but in 2001 it was acquired by a consortium of Islay landowners and London-based wine merchant for £6.5 million. Following renovation, the Bruichladdich distillery resumed production with the new owners evaluating stock of maturing spirit and casks used for maturation to release a series of limited editions, whilst the new maltings retain the distillery’s classic lighter fresh and fruity character.

ABOUT DIRECT WINES BOTTLINGS

This whisky was distilled at the Bruichladdich distillery and was aged for 19 years before being released by Direct Wines as part of their First Cask range. Direct Wines is primarily an international wine merchant and the world’s largest mail-order wine retailer. Under the First Cask label Direct Wines also operates as an independent whisky bottler, bottling a range of single cask whiskies. The original bottles were exclusively bottled for the Direct Wines members club, the First Cask Whisky Circle, later releases were available for customers to mail-order by the mixed case.

Distilled on the 2^nd November 1989, this Bruichladdich distillery expression was matured for 19 years in an unblended single hogshead cask. A bottling comprised of maltings produced during Bruichladdich’s reduced output period of the 1980s and shortly before the distillery’s closure, this dram offers the drinker a taste of Bruichladdich’s past incarnation.