Bere barley is one of the oldest cultivated cereals, rarely used these days except on a few occasions.

Grown on Weyland & Watersfield, Richmond Villa, Quoyberstane and Northfield Farms on Orkney.

Originally released for the Travel Retail market, this is a 2009 vintage Bruichladdich single malt Scotch whisky, made using Bere barley grown on Orkney! Bere barley has a much lower yield than other varieties that you're more likely to see in whisky production. 

Like its Islay neighbour Bunnahabhain, Bruichladdich has traditionally been an un-peated single malt, mostly owing to its requirements by the blenders who owned it. The last of these was Whyte and Mackay, who eventually shut it down in 1995, deeming it surplus to requirements. They sold the distillery to Murray McDavid in 2001, who launched the peated Port Charlotte and heavily-peated Octomore single malts in 2006 and 2008. A recommissioned Lomond still also now produces the popular Botanist gin there.