A very special bottle for me. Got acquanited with Auld Acquaintance (nice word play, isn't it?..) in 2009 in Harbour Inn, town of Bowmore, Islay.
Though let's start from the very beginning and dwell on the distillery itself. Founded in 1881 Bunnahabhain remained the only unpeated (or very low peated) Islay distillery for a very long time. It is located on the north of Islay close to Caol Ila. Magnifiscent view opens when you drive there from a hill.
In 1999 Bunnahabhain was bought from Highland Distillers by Edrington group. Production was limited to only a few weeks a year. In 2003 the distillery was again sold together with Black Bottle brand to Burnt Stewart Distillers. After 10 years Burnt Stewart Distillers (owners of Bunnahabhain, Deanston and Tobermory) were sold to Distell, South Africa.
Interesting facts about Bunnahabhain (thanks to maltmadness.com):
1. The name Bunnahabhain is Gaelic for 'Mouth of the River' and refers to the Margadale River.
2. Bunnahabhain's location was chosen mainly because it's easily accessible from the mainland by boat.
3. The warehouses of Bunnahabhain also contain casks of Tobermory and Ledaig malt whisky because there is insufficient storage capacity on the island of Mull itself. Illogistically enough, the freshly distilled whisky is first shipped from the Tobermory distillery to the Deanston distillery for filling, and then onwards to Bunnahabhain.
4. Together with Glenmorangie and Isle of Jura, Bunnahabhain used to have the tallest pot stills in the industry. However, different sources quote different sizes - and quite a few stills were replaced in recent years at those distilleries. So, I'll stay away from mentioning exact numbers at this point.
5. Bunnahabhain is one of almost two dozen malt whisky distilleries that were founded over a century ago during the 'whisky boom' of the late 19th century and which have managed to survive until this day. The other survivors include Aberfeldy, Ardmore, Aultmore, Balvenie, Benriach, Benromach, Bruichladdich, Craigellachie, Dalwhinnie, Dufftown, Glendullan, Glenfiddich, Glenrothes, Glentauchers, Knockandu, Knockdhu, Longmorn, Tamdhu and Tomatin.
If you're new to Bunnahabhain malts I'd recommend to start with 18 yo. Found this on the web, not sure if it's still so, though the idea stays the same:
Bunnahabhain 12 yo: 25% sherry casks / 75% bourbon casks
Bunnahabhain 18 yo: 40% sherry casks / 60% bourbon casks
Bunnahabhain 25 yo: 10% sherry casks / 90% bourbon casks
The best Bunna is sherried Bunna and if you don't have any of the official 30+ years sherried Bunnas on a shelf 18 yo regular version would be perfect choice and certainly a pleasure.
Inside the distillery you won't find fancy glowing stills as for example on Glenmorangie (don't get me wrong, Glenmorangie is a nice malt!). They say on Bunnahabhain: "we care more about what is inside the still", though I suspect they are just too lazy to clean them every year :)
So the first acquantance with legendary 1968 bottling took place in John MacLellan office where the most prominent bottlings were put on shelves.
Later in the evening I noticed Auld Acquaintance in Harbour Inn whisky list. Yes, in 2009 you were able to find it in a bar and order 1 or 2 drams depending on your mood :) I did so. Won't even describe it, the only short phrase to tell you - that the was the best Bunna I've ever tasted: rich, sweet, fruity, with notes of leather, tobacco and wood, perfect combination of sherry cask and subtle peat smoke... I hope to retaste it one day. Approximate score from 2009 AD = 95/100!
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