Bushmills Distillery Exclusive Review

I tried this Bushmills Distillery Exclusive at a recent Bushmills tasting where we skipped the basic blends and went straight to the single malts with the Bushmills 10, 16 and the 21; it was a fantastic night. We tasted the 10 and heard some stories. We sipped on the Bushmills 16 and heard some more. We savored the Bushmills 21 while watching a short film about Bushmills and then we had our senses blown by the Bushmill's Distillery Exclusive.

Aged in ex-Bourbon & ex-Sherry casks at a 60/40 ratio and then finished in Acacia casks it holds a powerful uniqueness in the Bushmills line. Bottled at 46% and non-chill filtered this whiskey crushed me in all the right ways immediately.

I was already excited about visiting Ireland, but after trying this I was looking at flight prices for the following weekend. I'm already looking forward to reliving the experience in the Irish Whiskey review below.

Bushmills Distillery Exclusive Review: Details and Tasting Notes

NA - They don't list it on the site, but they really should... in fact, all distilleries should list their distillery only bottlings on their sites. It's a good draw.

Bushmills Distillery Exclusive Review: Details (price, mash bill, cask type, ABV, etc.)

Region: Ireland

Price: Only available at the distillery

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Bushmills Distillery Exclusive Review: Tasting Notes

NOSE
Honey, sauternes, Smarties, graham, dried red fruit, roasted malt and spice with a hint of char and mint.

PALATE
Roasted malt, sauternes, honey, Necco wafers, graham, dried red fruit, malt, spice and hints of ash, tobacco and menthol.

FINISH
Long -> Caramel, spice roasted malt, vanilla, menthol - fades to cocoa and tobacco.

BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Excellent balance, med-full body and a slick oily mouthfeel.

Bushmills Distillery Exclusive Review: Overall and Score

On the aroma, it's bright... yet heavy; it's a complex delivery of so much it's almost perplexing but also exciting. The palate is a brooding heavy oily thing with layers of lighter fruity sweetness popping in and out with bits of spice. And the finish? It starts sweet, fades earthy and goes on for days... I need a bottle of this in my life.

Over the years I've been doing reviews of whiskey tasted at tastings like this less and less, but here I found myself in a unique situation of starting the night tasting whiskeys I know and love (Bushmills 10, 16 and 21). I know where I hold them in my internal rankings and with this showing so well above them, I knew exactly where it stood. Bushmills Distillery Exclusive is pure Irish Whiskey magic.

SCORE: 90-92/100 (A-, not consumed at home... but it's definitely on the high end)