Bunnahabhain again?
A Scot on Scotch reviews a single cask single malt from Bunnahabhain Distillery, bottled by Wm. Cadenhead in Campbeltown.
I’ve only published three reviews so far this year, and Bunnahabhain has already featured twice! I make no apologies for that, however. This is such a versatile dram that it never feels like repeating myself. This particular expression was bottled by Scotland’s oldest independent bottler, Wm. Cadenhead’s.
Cadenhead’s Independent Bottlers
I’ve always tried to support Indie bottlers on this website. Their existence has made the world of Scotch whisky so much more interesting and diverse. Cadenhead’s, however, has been at it longer than most.
William Cadenhead Ltd traces its roots to Aberdeen in 1842. George Duncan founded the business as a Vintner and distillery agent and was joined ten years later by his brother-in-law, William Cadenhead. By 1858, William was in sole charge of the enterprise. When William passed away in 1904, the business passed to his nephew Robert Duthie, who began to develop Cadenhead-branded whiskies. The company remained in the family until the 1970s when it was acquired by J&A Mitchell, owner of Springbank Distillery in Campbeltown.
Visiting Campbeltown
The connection between Scotland’s oldest bottler and Campbeltown’s iconic distillery remains in place today, and no visit to the Wee Toon would be complete without a visit to the Cadenhead’s warehouse. When I first visited Campbeltown in 2016, the Cadenhead’s warehouse tasting took place in one of the Springbank warehouses, and there was no tasting room, other than what little space was available in the shop on Union Street.
On my second visit, early last year, I was surprised to see how much had changed. Cadenhead’s now has its own Warehouse and Tasting Room, and while the new setup can’t quite emulate the magic of trudging around the mouldy old Springbank warehouse, it’s clearly a sign that things have been going well, not just for J & A Mitchell, but for Cadenhead’s too.
Back to Bunnahabhain
And so to the whisky. Cadenhead’s aren’t a success because of their history or their connection to Springbank. They’re a success because they put out whisky that’s of a consistently high standard. The bottle I’m reviewing today came from my aforementioned visit in early ’25. It’s a peated Bunnahabhain, fully matured in an ex-bourbon barrel. It was one of the five drams on offer at the Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting, and a bottle could be picked up in the shop afterwards.
Bunnahabhain is a great distillery. Built in 1881, it is something of an outlier among Islay whiskies. The vast majority of its spirit is unpeated, bucking the trend of the island’s usual output. The whisky is known for a robust, sherry-matured character. On occasion, however, Bunnahabhain allows itself to revert to type and produces a spirit much more aligned to the Islay tradition. The distillery calls it Mòine, Gaelic for peat. When bottled by indies, however, it’s usually referred to as Staoisha.
There’s something really fascinating about Bunnahabhain’s spirit. Matured in sherry, it feels heavy, oily and robust, but when matured in less active oak, especially when given decent time in the cask, there’s a light, tropical fruit character that often shines through. Combine that with some dense maritime smoke, and you have an intriguing dram indeed.
Cadenhead’s Bunnahabhain Review
Tasting notes: The nose is briny and coastal, rather than overly peaty. There’s vanilla and oak tannins. Some lemon scent. Toffee. Light, nutty sherry influence. On the palate, the salty, briny character comes first, followed by some peppery spice and damp, ashy smoke that puffs into life in the finish.
Thoughts: A nicely balanced peated Bunnahabhain. The impact of the refill butt is fairly subtle, which allows the complexities of the spirit to work with the flavours of the cask, rather than be dominated by them. The smoke, too, is powerful without taking over, and I just love those little hints of tropical fruits that peak through now and again. A great example of a fantastic spirit being given the breathing space it needs to shine. Fantastic.
Price: £70. Available exclusively from the Wm Cadenhead’s Warehouse Tasting Experience in Campbeltown. Not too crazy a price for a single cask malt from such a popular distillery.
For more on Wm. Cadenhead’s visit here
For more on Bunnahabhain visit here
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