Heavily peated contender.
 
Bruichladdich is one of the most impressive distilleries in Scotland, the World even. It was built in 1881 by the Harvey brothers, who came from a dynastic Whisky family. The brothers had wanted to create a distillery that was the very antithesis of an Islay farm distillery. They built a cathedral-like, state-of-the-art Victorian still house, where they used 6m tall stills, which was unheard of at that time, and way ahead of its time.
 
Today, the distillery remains pretty much the same as it did over 100 years ago. Their belief is, as the French culinary saying goes, "it is in the oldest pots that the best soup is made". Slow fermentation, slow distillation, in very traditional, wooden vats and huge washes made from towering Douglas Fir.
 
Part of their heavily peated range, Bruichladdich’s Port Charlotte is a journey through its Islay home and Scottish heritage. The peat is cranked up to 40PPM and is perfect for all you smoke lovers out there. This expression takes the usual floral notes that are characteristic of Bruichladdich and intertwines them magnificently with a strong heft of peat. It also throws in some sea air for good measure, capturing the roving waves around its coastal birthplace.