Bruichladdich Black Art 1994 Ed 08-1 - A tasting with Nick Baeyens

Nick Baeyens is a Brand Ambassador for PHD (Progressive Hebridean Distillers), the makers of Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte, Octomore and the fantastic The Botanist Gin. Each time Nick invites us to a tasting, I know I’m up for something special. In the past we already deconstructed bottlings, tasted individual casks, shared a pot of mussels or went on a foraging walk at the Belgian/Dutch coastal border. This guy is a brand ambassador, bartender, forager, teacher, DJ,… that will always drag you into a new adventure. This week he invited me to a virtual tasting of a very exclusive bottling: Bruichladdich Black Art 1994 Edition 08.1 - 26 years.

“Decades have passed since this unpeated spirit ran from the stills in the ethereal, Victorian stillhouse. The stillmen who were present in 1994 would have no concept of its destiny; that it would eventually become the eighth iteration of the notorious Bruichladdich Black Art. This spirit would take many weaving journeys within our loch-side warehouses. Each cask it met has been identified and nurtured over time under the tenureship of the Head Distiller. All with one ultimate purpose in mind. Few responsibilities are as daunting as the composition of this cuvee. Lesser distillers would be unwilling to release their finest casks completely unaccounted for, totally in secret”. 

And of course Nick made this tasting – again – something to remember. 

Together with a pair of  whisky-samples, we received an intriguing treasure-chest filled with Black Art stuff... a deck of Tarot cards, candles, sage, wood, a ring and a silver necklace with a jewel. He invited Sofie Joan Wouters aka ‘Esmeralda’ to interrupt the webinar and take us on a journey for a very personal seance. 

A few more credits: 
The silver jewel we received was one of 15 unique designs, created for this occasion by Anaïs de Keyzer. The deck of Tarot cards was designed and illustrated by Lisa Sterle.

A big 'Thank You' to Nick for – again – a very adventurous tasting. And by the way, I really loved this whisky. Very unusual and with a slightly sweeter taste-profile for Bruichladdich, but totally the style of whisky I like to sip. 

Disclaimer : All pictures and texts are copyrighted by Geert Conard and Esito Management & Communications unless stated otherwise in the article. While some items might have been gifted by the producer or distributor, these are in no way paid promotions or recommendations.