French Single Malt Whisky | 50.2% ABV

Score: 7/10

**Very Good Indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*A tidal wave of rich, thick goodness, and there’s no one to buy it*

Paying Homage

I recently received some rather sad news that I feel I need to share with you all. Although you needn’t worry; no one’s in the hospital.

Now, I don’t expect many readers to be familiar with the French whisky scene, whether it be the distilleries or the people behind the liquid, so let me give you some background. Bruno Mangin founded the Rouget-De-L’Isle brewery in 1994, in Bletterans, a little town on the foothills of the Jura mountains.

Don’t panic, these have nothing to do with a certain mass market-oriented Scottish distillery. At first Rouget-De-L’isle was just a local, small scale brewery, albeit at a time when a small scale, craft brewery was practically unheard of. I believe it was only the fifth craft brewery to open in the country.

At one point, a batch of beer turned out spoiled, and since the money was tight, throwing it down the drain was not an option, so Bruno partnered with a local distiller to turn it into a spirit. After this first foray in spirits making, the idea of producing whisky was born. First distillation took place in 1999, and the first whisky was released in 2004. So, this distillery is older than Kilchoman or Glengyle.

The whiskies are now called BM Signature - after Bruno himself - to differentiate them from the beers, which are still produced also. Bruno is probably one of the most recognisable faces in the French whisky sphere, thanks in no small part to a glorious beard, so I guess it makes sense he’s the producer and the mascot.

Right from the get go, Bruno wanted to use wine casks coming from producers close to the distillery. Some of you may already know this, but the Jura region of France is famous for basically two things: cheese, mainly in the form of Comté and Morbier (not pronounced more beer, sorry), and wine, notably whites made from the savagnin blanc grapes.

There are different wines produced with savagnin. Along with regular dry whites - called ouillé - the most famous kind is undoubtedly vin jaune (“yellow wine”), which is a dry white wine, aged for a minimum of 6 years and three months in an oxidative manner. That means it’s aged in barrels that are about 230-300 litres, and never topped up, allowing a veil of yeast similar to the flor in sherry production to form on top of the wine. Vin jaune is a dry yet very aromatic wine, offering rich aromas of walnuts, curry spices and dried fruits, and goes exceptionally well with a properly aged comté cheese of at least 18 months.

There is even an AOP in Jura which exclusively produces vin jaune, named Chateau Chalon, but the ones made in Arbois are equally good in my experience. As with whisky, talent of the producer matters more than area of production most of the time. Vin jaune is really its own thing, though I guess certain sherry wines can be a bit similar. If you want to try vin jaune, I advise searching for these producers: Stéphane Tissot, Domaine des marnes blanches, Jérôme Arnoux, Domaine des ronces or Domaine Dugois. Bottles can be pricey (50-100€ a bottle), as it is usually a very small production requiring lots of time.

They also produce another kind of wine, sweet this time, named vin de paille, which translates to “straw wine”. It’s the one that interests us here, as the whisky tasted below was matured in a cask which held this wine.

The name refers to the fact that the savagnin - it is mostly savagnin which is used for vin de paille, though chardonnay, poulsard and trousseau are allowed as well - grapes are dried for at least 6 weeks (and often much more) after the harvest, traditionally on wooden boards covered in straw. This allows the grape to deepen its aromas, as well as dramatically increase its sugar content - about 320-80g/L of sugar in the pressed juice - producing a wine which after fermentation, still retains somewhere in the order of 100 to 150g of sugar per litre, and aged for a minimum of three years in wood.

Due to the very low amount of juice left in the grapes, vin de paille is quite expensive as well, often going for 40-70€ for a half bottle. Pricey for sure, but it is an absolute nectar, offering aromas of forest honeys, dried flowers, cooked fruits, and an unparalleled richness. It goes wonderfully well with a plate of strong aged cheeses, or with sweet fruit pies. Again, vin de paille is quite unique, but it can be likened to Tokaji or Pedro Ximenez sherry.

Back to Bruno Mangin though. Word got out in the past months that Bruno was looking to retire after suffering health problems. The man has been working since he was 16, so I think we can all understand he wants to rest a little bit. He says he wants to sell and retire around 2028-29. The thing is, his children did not want to take over, and, more incredibly so, he did not manage to sell the distillery (yet).

Even his distributor, Diva Domaines & Distilleries, wasn’t able to finance a takeover of the distillery. He did sell the still, a big Armagnac column, to still manufacturer Honoré though. I’ve read that he has since bought a new still, albeit a much smaller one, to continue production while he’s still around.

He is also starting to sell casks, some of which date back to the early 2000’s. If there are any curious indies reading this looking for French whisky distilled in 2003-2004… Just sayin’.

So that’s the sad news. A distillery is slowly closing its doors, and a page turns in the French whisky history book.

I’ve had my eyes on this 14yo for a while now, and hearing about Bruno’s retirement only gave me an excuse to pull the trigger and hopefully celebrate his career with a great whisky.

Review 1/2 - Ainsley

Bruno Mangin BM 14yo, French Single Malt Whisky, full vin de paille maturation, no coloration or chill filtration, cask strength, 50.2% ABV
€76 (£65) paid

This whisky was matured for 14 years in an ex-vin de paille cask. All of what Bruno does is full maturation, no finishing. I haven’t tried a lot of whiskies matured in such casks, in fact I can only recall another one, by Bruno Mangin as well. And I only remember liking it, no particular tasting notes, so I guess I’m coming to this with an open mind.

This whisky is natural colour but there is no mention of chill filtration on the bottle, as is the case unfortunately with most French whiskies.On the other hand, I’m highly doubtful of the fact that Bruno would alter his whiskies in any way, even when bottling under 46%.

As for the lower-than-RRP price, this is indeed a bottle I purchased at a discount through my place of work. Expect to pay between 90 to 100€ if you come across one, but for that, you’d have to come to France, and I sure as hell hope you would tell me if you did come, because I will not let you leave without us sharing a dram!

Nose

Quite intense, savoury, thick caramel, mustard seeds, almost meaty. There’s a vibe that reminds me of some cask strength, 30yo-plus Armagnac or Cognac Fins Bois. Hints of varnish, which is fine by me, surrounding cooked figs and dates, as well as melted white chocolate. A burst of cherries preserved in Kirsch (Griottines, as they’re called here), as well as a whiff of old herbal liqueurs. There’s quite a bit of honey as well, but the thickest, richest, heaviest honey you can think of. Hey, mountain honey, which echoes the Jura mountains where this whisky’s been made! Also some spices, evoking Alsatian gingerbread.

With water, it gets sweeter and fruitier, but we’re still very much on dried and cooked fruits. Rich dried apricots drenched in honey and demerara sugar syrup. Underlying caramel makes me think of deep fried mars bars (drooling as I’m typing this) and crème brûlée. Also some ground coffee and strawberry jam.

Palate

Again, this is intense, savoury, with rich dark honeys and fig jam. Old Armagnac makes itself known as well on the palate. Concentrated, showing a short to medium length.

With water it’s slightly more herbal and peppery (black pepper), yet creamier as well. Texture and development are improved, but the length remains short to medium.

The Dregs

Man, this is good whisky. It is complex, rich, and quite wild at first, and water helps it a great deal, not necessarily making it more complex, but easier to dissect. For reference, It was reduced to about 46-48% alc. There is also remarkable cohesion between the nose and the palate which is surely the mark of a great cask.

While Bruno Mangin is not going to be making whisky for much longer, there are still many casks yet to be bottled, and though I can’t help but feel a tad bittersweet about the distillery closing in apparent indifference, I rejoice in the idea of finding other old, unique and interesting whiskies coming from Bruno. Merci l’ami!

Massive thanks to Earie for chiming in and giving us his feedback, it’s been and will be quite fun to collaborate on these recent reviews. By the way, I should disclose that the sample sent over the border to Earie was the neck pour. I don’t know if it is the reason why he didn’t like it as much as I did, or it is just a case of having different palates and tastes, so I guess you can make up your own mind on that. Maybe Tyree could enlighten us on neck pour science, if he’s got the time to do so!

French whisky calls for French music, so I thought I’d share a sonic treat with you, in the form of the late Alain Bashung’s Aucun Express, appearing on his 1998 album Fantaisie Militaire. One of the best artists ever, and surely in my top 5 most beautiful songs of all time.

Score: 7/10 AF

Review 2/2 - Earie

Bruno Mangin BM 14yo, French Single Malt Whisky, full vin de paille maturation, no coloration or chill filtration, cask strength, 50.2% ABV
€76 (£65) paid

You might remember how Ainsley and I recently teamed up with a sample swap, resulting in a rather extensive review on some Ardmores and Armorik. His generosity has it that I find myself on the receiving end of some very interesting samples. Quite a few of them come from distilleries completely under my radar, so picture if you will my inner whisky geek doing a Gene Kelly impression, dancing with excitement and joy.

One that immediately caught my eye was this one from BM (Bruno Mangin), as it rang absolutely no bells whatsoever. To find out that there’s a French distillery out there who’s capable of releasing something with a14 yo age statement without it ever being picked up by someone who takes pride in keeping track of what’s happening in the European whisky scene, only convinces me of the famous Aristotle quote ‘the more you know, the more you understand you don’t know’.

Score: 6/10

**Good stuff.**
***TL;DR***
*Almost a case of too much of a good thing?*

Nose

Oliy, ever so slightly industrial even. Wood polish notes and a waxy element - reminiscent of some durrrrty Clynelish, in fact. Deep notes of currants and berries linger underneath, which evolve further into notes of raisins and figs, with just a hint of vanilla and granulated sugar. Overall impression: rich, oily, fruit syrup and slightly dirty. After adding water the fruit and vanilla oil manifests become clearer.

Palate

Chewy, dense arrival. Leathery-meaty texture. Oily and industrial, reminding me of old Ben Nevis this time. It really opens up with some water: woody and a copper like mineral note, actually reminding me of my great-grandfather's war claroon, believe it or not. Leather notes and finally, a deep, dark fruit element that goes on into the finish.

The Dregs

A barrage of flavours! There’s so much going on, and it’s very intriguing and busy. Initially I wrote down a 7/10 after my first dram. Coming back to it during the following days, I was still impressed, but couldn’t shake off the impression that perhaps it’s a bit too much, all at once?

There’s no denying the quality of this whisky, but the balance to lift this from ‘good’ to ‘great’ is missing a bit in my opinion, and with so much emphasis on the casks involved, it’s a very ‘in your face’ kind of whisky.

OK, Ainsley, a good and impressive one to continue our little collab, curious to see what else you have in store for me!

Score: 6/10 EA

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. AF

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