2010 - 2018 Bottling | 46.3% ABV

Score: 7/10

**Very Good Indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*My memory isn’t wrong; in this case -older is better*

Time Capsules

Why do we keep photos? They enable us to remember people, places, and events. To remember how things were… To remember people when they were younger… To remember places from times past… And to remember those who are not with us.

These are visual hitch posts. Or, perhaps better described using the phrase coined by Dougie – memory anchors. I dare say we take for granted the amazing technology that allows us to pull out one’s mobile device and scroll through hundreds or thousands of those memory anchors. It brings us right back to that time, or with that person, or being at that place.

But what about memory anchors for your taste buds?

We all speak of our favorite foods or memorable meals and reminisce about all of the things we once ate. Maybe it was your mother’s apple pie. Maybe for another it was a particular meal at a restaurant during a trip. For me, how I wish I could go back in time to have another chance to sample my grandmother’s rugelach and brisket.

We all have fond memories of taste experiences from the past. Sadly, I can’t whip out my cell phone to re-experience those tastes. We have no food memory anchor parallels akin to photos of persons, places or things. We cannot go back in time for taste experiences for what we appreciated a month ago, two years ago, a decade ago, or more.

Or can we?

My whisky journey started pre-COVID. Among my first experiences many were good and many were educational - the good, bad, and the ugly. While I was first dipping my toes into the world of uisge beatha, among the first bottles that opened my eyes and gripped me as nothing else had – or would for years to come – was a humble bottle of Bunnahabhain 12 year old.

Those pre-pandemic days seem like a lifetime ago. How do I know I had my eyes opened before March 2020? I remember the Bunna 12 in my cabinet being the second bottle of that expression I had purchased – my first ever repeat whisky purchase. I remember one evening as I poured a small dram, worrying I would have to ration the liquid as I was already half-way through the bottle and wasn’t sure if or when I would have another chance to get to the store.

The bottle – along with another Islay stalwart, the Lagavulin 16yo – were the bottles that brought my beautiful wife and me both down the whisky trail. When we visited Scotland in 2022, the very first thing we planned was a trip to Islay to take a tour and tasting at Bunnahabhain. Lagavulin was the second item to schedule.

Lagavulin was, indeed, such a satisfying visit. Laphroaig and its view over the water was breathtaking. Ardbeg was cool. Bruichladdich and Kilchoman were fantastic. All that said, they all fell measurably short in comparison to the time spent at Bunnahabhain. This, of course, is our view and no disrespect to the other Islay distilleries we visited.

Everything, to us, was special about the trip to Bunnahabhain. Getting to the distillery down that semi-paved, narrow, winding road took us past Ardnahoe, which was still not fully open and hadn’t released any whisky as we passed it on our way to Bunnahabhain. We soaked in the view looking over the Sound of Islay toward the Paps of Jura across the way. We marvelled at the architecture of the buildings and, as we headed into Warehouse No. 9, we breathed in the aromas in anticipation of sampling those untouched whiskies straight from five different barrels. I have goosebumps on my arms as I type. Such memories.

The Bunnahabhain signature flavor profile that my wife and I had enjoyed so much before our trip remains at the forefront of our whisky memories. But, as has been discussed in whisky circles – starting with whispers and then growing to bold statements out loud – the amazing Bunnahabhain 12 year old’s taste experience has noticeably diminished over the past two or three years. Perhaps due to an inability of the distillery to get a hold of the same level of amazing casks? Perhaps due to the fact that prior iterations of the Bunna 12 had an embarrassment of riches with deeper, older stocks to go into those bottles which, presently, are no longer available? Maybe there are other forces at work, but sampling different bottles in 2023 and through 2024, those bottlings were noticeably inferior to that which was indelibly imprinted in my pre-COVID whisky memory banks.

Getting back to the question posed above – can we go back for taste experiences as we can with our photo albums? Well… I think so.

When I went back for my last auction foray, I thought of my strategy for the whisky adventure. Thoughts of older Bunnahabhain 12 were in my head as I had re-listened to the Dramface Colonials Podcast #2. During that podcast Adam asked aloud if everyone else had noticed the slipping of quality in Bunnahabhain 12yo. Everyone else on the podcast agreed with his observation.

With those thoughts running through my mind, a mini-epiphany came to me as the tired hamster between my ears managed to climb on its wheel and started moving. If I can find a Springbank bottled in 1969 or a 1991 yellow submarine Bruichladdich, perhaps I might be able to find and secure an older Bunnahabhain 12yo to see if I could ‘go back in time’ and find that amazing distillate preserved in a bottle. Yes! A time capsule of flavor.

With that thought, I added this as the fourth and final challenge I gave myself for the auction: find an older Bunna 12.

And so, the hunt was on. Sure enough, there were three different lots that appeared to be older Bunnahabhain 12s, and I kept my eye on them. As noted in previous reviews, I mean no disrespect to the Blair Athol, Benrinnes, or the Loch Lomond I also won in the auction, but the real excitement of the auction was to find and snag myself this.

I will spare you the angst and the very blue words uttered under my breath in seeing how new bids were coming in toward the end of the auction. At the end, much to my glee, one of the older Bunna lots landed in my lap at the self-imposed £40 limit.

Review

Bunnahabhain 12yo, Official bottling, 2010 - 2018 vintage bottle, 46.3% ABV
£40 plus fees & shipping paid at auction

I couldn’t identify the exact bottling dates from the auction photos. Even though the bottle, its box, and the small pamphlet of information are now in my hands I still cannot ascertain an exact bottling date. There is no bottling code stamped or etched into the bottle. There is no date on the box nor the small pamphlet.

However, I found online sites showing different bottling labels for Bunnahabhain. According to the web, my bottle appears to bear a label used between 2010 and 2018. Even if my bottle was at the end of that range, it would still match the vintage of bottlings that I first enjoyed.

(If there is someone that can lead me to find some code or other markings that would definitively date my bottle, that would be most appreciated. I thought I had some luck tracing the bar code number. However, while it confirmed that the code is correlated to a Bunnahabhain 12yo with my particular bottle’s label, there was no year associated with it. Whiskyauctioneer.com shows me that my particular label was in use between 2010 and 2018 but no way to ascertain the exact year. Also curious to note that diffordsguide.com notes that a “new” Bunnahabhain 12 (showing my bottle’s label) was launched in 2010 with smoked glass replacing the previous emerald green glass along with a jump in ABV to 46.3%. Also, the site says the 2010 launch had the change to no chill filtration and natural color. So, my bottle is post 2010, but no other information to nail down a date between 2010 and 2018. So, still a bit at a loss for an exact bottling date.)

Regardless of the exact date, I hold in my hands a memory capsule. I don’t remember ever examining a bottle, its box, or its ancillary items for as long as I did with this Bunna. After all of the thoughts and the effort to get it to my door, I actually had a little hesitation before uncorking. However, after a beat -and that lengthy inspection - this bottle was uncorked with glee. Would my sensory memories be brought back in full force? Would my sensory memories be seen to be chalked up to having been made more grandiose by wild fantasies of magical liquid? Cue the dram in the glass.

Nose

Plumped raisins, vanilla, and leather. Cinnamon sugar. Can something be rich and luscious while being a bit subdued? I’ll answer my own question: yes. A waft of orange creme. Oak is subtle and nice. The leather and, more broadly, that initial trio is lovely – raisins, vanilla and leather. Dried figs. After some time, a subtle but noticeable floral waft and a bit of salinity come forward. But, man, that holy trinity is lovely.

Palate

Such a bloody good dram. Stewed stone fruits. Plums. Casaba melon. Plumped raisins used in baking (I use a combination of orange juice and bourbon to plump raisins for my raisin scones). The sense of old, oil-conditioned leather. Sea-salted chocolate. Vanilla cream used in Boston Cream donuts. Despite 46.3% ABV, it has heft and weight. A touch of minerality. Spices of clove and cardamom. The cinnamon is there but just a hint. Once hitting the mid-palate, those spices become more prominent and a waft of saltiness, cacao, and malty oatmeal with a hint of sweetness (caramel? butterscotch?) but heavy on the cream. All of this works so well with the sherry influence that overlays it all.

The Dregs

A long, lost friend has returned.

That initial introduction of Bunnahabhain 12 year old from many years ago is back in my glass. I cannot say that this is an exact match to my pre-COVID tastings, but it feels generally so. I seem to recall a bit of smoke – a wee waft – in the glass. None detectable here. That said, the richness of the dram, the leather, and the raisins and vanilla all seem to be wonderful recalls of memories I had of this bottle. Time travel? It sure seems like it.

This is not the best whisky I have ever had, but it is a whisky that I have missed. There is something so very satisfying to be able to confirm what you believe you have been experiencing (knowing that your taste buds are not lying to you when you experience the slight-but-noticeable ebbing of the present iterations of Bunna 12) and also being able to reach back to the memory anchor and enjoy those bold and rich flavors once again.

Of the four bottles I was able to purchase at the auction, this is the bottle that I love the most. This, despite the Blair Athol garnering an 8/10 and, honestly, a better (but different) whisky. What makes this bottle my favorite among the four? The flavour, sure. That rich and balanced sherried profile. But also the memories. The reach of the bottle to tap into one of the foundational whiskies of my experience.

Yes, there is something rather remarkable about a Glenmorangie 10yo or a Glenfiddich 12yo in their incredible ability to keep their expressions constant not just over a few years, but decades. And though I acknowledge the consistency is remarkable, I would much rather have depth and variances – even if that means the Bunnahabhain 12 I have in my glass will be but a memory, once again, when the bottle is rinsed.

I am appreciative of, and grateful for, this time capsule while it lasts.

It will become a memory once again soon. I will deeply miss it. And that’s all right.

Score: 7/10

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. OS

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