Beloved Islay distillery Bruichladdich has just done a world's first with its collaboration with Ningxia and Shanxi-based Chinese winery Grace Vineyard, where three Bruichladdich whiskies 9 Years Old, 15 Years Old and 21 Years Old have been finished in Chinese red wine barrels.

Chinese wines have for awhile now begun to make a bid for the international podium in establishing themselves as world class winemakers, and Grace Vineyard stands as one of said leaders of the pack. Established in 1997 by Chun Keung Chan, and now led by his daughter Judy Leissner, Grace Vineyard has been a pioneer in the Chinese wine scene, having pulled out all the stops and even having renowned French oenologists support the effort. Located north of central China, Ningxia has become the focal point for numerous top notch Chinese wineries, and is where Grace Vineyard started with, now having expanded to more eastern Shanxi and Fujian regions. The winery had started out emphasising traditional Bordeaux varieties of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, but has since expanded to more emerging varietals such as Aglianico, Tempranillo, Italian favourites Nebbiolo and Sangiovese, as well as of course, China's flagship Marselan.

Grace Vineyard in Ningxia.

For the collaboration, Grace Vineyard had provided 100 barrels that were previously filled with its to-end red blend Chairman's Reserve, which were then filled with Bruichladdich's whiskies. This project, named the Grace Vineyard Cask Series, thus marks the first instance of a Scotch whisky aged in Chinese wine barrels!

The whiskies filled into the barrels were distilled with 100% Scottish malted barley, with the distillation, ageing and bottling all entirely done on Islay.

The Grace Vineyard Cask Series 9 Years Old comes from a single 2015 vintage cask of Bruichladdich that had up till then been aged in first-fill Bourbon barrels. It is said to offer notes of "black cherry, dark berries and forest fruits, with Bruichladdich's delicate fruity character adding a hint of citrus", and has been bottled at 63% ABV, priced at RMB 980 (US$137).

The Grace Vineyard Cask Series 15 Years Old comes from a single cask of second-filled Syrah, producing a whisky that "balances ripe plum and apricot with the natural oils of the unpeated spirit", and is bottled at 56% ABV, priced at RMB 1,780 (US$250).

Finally, the Grace Vineyard Cask Series 21 Years Old, which comes from the 2003 vintage of Bruichladdich whiskies that had been previously aged in a second-fill Oloroso Sherry hogshead, said to deliver "robust red fruit notes and warm spice, with a subtle mineral note", and is bottled at 56% ABV, priced at RMB 2,800 (US$392).

Interestingly, Bruichladdich is not the only one making whiskies in this collaboration, as Grace Vineyard has recently acquired Dexi Distillery, based in Longyan of the Fujian Province, in 2019, which has now been producing whiskies under the brand Ceilidh, as guided by Diageo veteran Mike Nicolson. Thus far the Chinese distillery has been said to have filled over 1,000 barrels, and have begun using casks ranging from Port, Sherry, Bourbon, and of course wine casks such as Bordeaux, Muscatel and certainly it's own Grace Vineyard wine casks! The distillery has even touted using barrels seasoned with traditional Chinese Huangjiu.

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team