46°
Distillery : The BenRiach - Speyside
Bourbon Barrels, Jamaican Rum and Toasted Virgin Oak Casks
Original Bottling
Core Range
Single Malt
Launched in 2020
Unchilllfiltered, Uncoloured
Peated from 20 to 25 ppm
In 2016, the Brown-Forman group, which founded the Jack Daniel's brand, bought three Scottish distilleries: The GlenDronach, Glenglassaugh and The BenRiach. For the third one, it meant a complete overhaul of the regular range, although it would take years for this to come to fruition, thanks to the new Master Blender, Rachel Barrie, recruited in 2017. From a completely new recipe, this Smoky Ten combines the depth of peat with the smoothness of rum casks.
Let's Taste It :
Fairly light country peat, with hints of vanilla, candied lemon and cane sugar. Cooked grapefruit, caramelised on the edges. Zest of blood orange. Artichoke heart. Hay, dried wheat in the background. The whole is earthy, dusty. Evanescent smoke. But it's still very sweet. On the palate, the acidity of lemon, the fruitiness of a yellow plum, mirabelle, and spices. Peanuts, white pepper, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon. On the finish, the vanilla lemon comes through very elegantly, quite long, coconut glaze, ripe pineapple. Liquorice stick.
In Short,
Despite being a little light on the palate, this new bottling is encouragingly satisfying. It has a real personality, an original imprint, more marked and better balanced than the Curiositas. You could try buying it to compare with Benromach 10 yo.
Score : 85
To Be Listened While Sipping :
Huey Lewis & The News - I Want a New Drug
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