A mini selection of seriously boosted Brackla


July 18, 2025

A mini selection of seriously
boosted Brackla

No doubt this will be an adventure, as at least the official ones, like their mates over at Aberfeldy, can be finished in some rather unexpected casks. In short, we’ll see what’s in the stash...

Royal Brackla 10 yo 2014/2024 (46%, James Eadie, first fill barrel and refill butt, casks #1598-303564, 1155 bottles)

We had tasted an excellent 2013 in the same series (WF 87). Colour: apricot. Nose: curiously winey to begin with, with poached peaches in red wine, stewed cherries, strawberry jam... But where on earth is that coming from? Mind you, it’s most enjoyable, especially as we then veer off towards Battenberg cake (like), chocolate mousse and rosehip herbal tea. Amusing and very pleasant, with vanilla appearing a little later on. Mouth: those surprising winey notes return on the palate, though less pronounced, together with blood orange, bay leaf, cherry stems tea, and a hint of ginger tonic… Finish: same composition lingering for quite some time, with a slightly bitter aftertaste (Seville oranges). Comments: a pretty good wee Brackla, though it feels somewhat less compact, polished and coherent than what James Eadie usually proposes, or so it seems to me. For once.
SGP:561 - 82 points.

Royal Brackla 10 yo 2014/2025 (48.2%, Signatory Vintage, Small Batch Edition #17, first fill sherry PX hogshead finish)

Another young malt that's fairly ‘budget’, which we’ve absolutely no quarrel with. Colour: full gold. Nose: oh, how funny, we've just popped open a fresh tin of shoe polish while a teapot of lapsang souchong sits nearby, along with a hefty walnut and raisin loaf. You get the picture. Mouth: quite close to the previous one, with a certain tension, but also spiced herbal infusions, salmiak, dark honeys, and even the usual black turrón, here bolstered by black pepper and a wee lick of tar. Finish: fairly long, more peppery still. Peppermint and black pepper as the signature. Comments: again, this wee Brackla was far from typical, but the combination with PX worked rather well.
SGP:562 - 84 points.

We’ll finish with an official bottling that’s also had a bit of a boost for a few months:

Royal Brackla 22 yo ‘Exceptional Cask - Tokaji’ (53%, OB, casks #50,000-50,004, 1380 bottles)

Royal Brackla 22 yo ‘Exceptional Cask - Tokaji’ (53%, OB, casks #50,000-50,004, 1380 bottles)
The label doesn’t seem to make it clear, but once again, this is just a finishing, although in the case of Tokaji, that might actually be good news. Incidentally, we’ve never quite understood why Sauternes finishings tend to work fairly well, while those in Tokaji have given us, over the past 25 years, some perfect little monsters. Longrow 1995, anyone? Right then, let’s get to work… Colour: gold. Nose: immediately dissonant, a bit like Ozzy singing Bach, but in the end, I think it sort of works, even if the apricot tart and banana cake notes are wildly ‘over the top’. Masses of cake batter too, pre-oven, already packed with sultanas steeped in kirsch. With water: notes of nougat with a heavy dose of honey. Mouth (neat): it’s like we’re sipping a very sweet muscat, say from Samos. Except this is stronger, of course. With water: imagine a mix of viognier, gewurztraminer and muscat. That’s rather fun too, though I reckon it could use a good deal of ice. Finish: same again, very fruity, almost sweet without quite crossing the line. Comments: perhaps best enjoyed over a Japanese ice ball? We do like it, though maybe not €300-like—it’s a pricey little muscat, ha.
SGP:741 - 84 points.

Check the index of all Brackla we've tasted so far