Brenne 10yo Limited Edition (bottled 2017)

Brenne 10yo Limited Edition (bottled 2017)

Official bottling
Single malt - Poitou-Charentes
Straw
48% ABV
Dram

Nose: Pineapples, honey, honeydew melons, mint, lemons, hints of bubble gum. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, thickens slightly, mouth coating, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Photocopy paper, spearmint, fresh cut grass, bubblegum, pineapples, mangoes, honey, lemons, hints of green tea. 
Finish: Short. Honey, lemons, fresh cut grass, spearmint. 

Comments: 

Still fruity, but with other flavours, mainly herbal and a little floral. It’s now recognisably whisky, whereas in its early days this distillery made something deeply weird.

Verdict:

I like this.

Brenne Special Edition (Pineau de Charentes Finish)

Brenne Special Edition (Pineau de Charentes Finish)

Official bottling
Single malt - Poitou-Charentes
Dark yellow gold
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Artificial grape flavour, sultanas, cream, artificial melon flavour, honeydew melons, bubble gum. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, astringent, cool, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. Artificial melon flavour, mint, sultanas, white wine, icing sugar, white pepper, bubble gum. 
Finish: Medium. Bubble gum, icing sugar, sultanas, raspberries, artificial grape flavour. 

Comments: 

Floral and fragrant, definitely an improvement on previous bottlings. Tastes rather like melon Ramune, the Japanese soft drink, especially at this low ABV.

Verdict:

I like this.

Brenne 10yo

Brenne 10yo

Official bottling
Single malt - Poitou-Charentes
Golden
48% ABV
Dram

Nose: Magic marker, lemon zest, grapefruit, pomeloes, cinnamon, pencil erasers, hints of pencil lead. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, volatile, cool, tingly. 
Tasting:  Sour sweet. White grapes, sultanas, honey, fresh cut grass, cinnamon, pomeloes. 
Finish: Medium. Cinnamon, lemon zest, grapefruit, sultanas, hints of damson jam. 

Comments: 

Citrusy and feinty, also some esters. Good jammy notes on the finish as well, although there’s a hint of bitterness that reminds me of grapefruit. This is not the same as the early Brennes I tried. It’s much better.

Verdict:

I like this.

Brenne Whisky Cuvée Speciale Lot 006

Brenne Whisky Cuvée Speciale Lot 006

Official bottling
Single malt - Poitou-Charentes
Golden
40% ABV
Dram

Nose: Grapes, peaches, honey, bubble gum, hints of orange juice. 
Mouthfeel: Light body, loose, slippery, airy. 
Tasting:  Sweet sour. Bubble gum, orange juice, white grapes, peaches, honey. 
Finish: Short. Green tea, bubble gum, strawberries, white grapes. 

Comments: 

Very sweet and fruity, loaded with estery artificial fruit flavours. Like strawberry-flavoured Hubba Bubba gum. It's also redolent with cooked, almost overripe fruit. Doesn't really taste like whisky. While that's never stopped me in the past, I think this is too harsh, a few more years of aging may well bring the malt complexity to the fore.

Verdict:

Not bad.