Speyside

Benromach Peat Smoke Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

Benromach Peat Smoke
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$60 – $75
Website
Benromach Peat Smoke

What the Distillery Says

A wonderfully fruity and SERIOUSLY SMOKY single malt, we only produce very small batches of this GORGEOUS Speyside whisky that’s big on unique flavour.

Tasting Notes
Pour yourself a dram of this seriously smoky single malt whisky… we only produce very small batches of this unique Benromach Speyside whisky, so you’re one of the few people who are able to enjoy it. The finest Scottish barley is malted with high levels of peat smoke at 67ppm (parts per million: the phenol level, to those in the know). Take in the AROMA WITHOUT WATER… sweet vanilla, honey and cured meat aromas, hints of apricot and lemon combining with a beautiful subtle tobacco note. Dive in and enjoy the TASTE WITHOUT WATER. There’s cracked pepper with sweet strawberry and orange flavours, a delicate hint of aniseed… combined with a lingering edge of bonfire embers. Now enjoy the AROMA WITH WATER… the delicate smokiness complements lemon, honey and vanilla aromas with sweet hints of apricot and sugared almonds developing on the tongue. Lift it to your lips and savour the TASTE WITH WATER. Slow cooked apple, pear and tangy grapefruit give way to a trace of cocoa powder and an absolutely gorgeous edge of lingering cigars. It’s a wonderfully fruity and smoky single malt whisky.

Matured in first fill oak Bourbon barrels

What Gary Says

Nose:  Peat smoke with a sweet tar note, leather, smoked meat, a touch of iodine; a bit of water gives just a hint of lemondrops.
Palate:  Peat up front that evolves into a fruity spongecake with bits of butterscotch; bit of water softens up and brings more fruit sweetness.
Finish:  A tad short, drying with a note of butterscotch and hint of peat.
Comments:  This was very different from the Benromach 10 Yr and Organic, and for me was a bit too tilted.  I lose the fruit notes on the nose but find them on the palate – which feels disconnected to me (the nose sets me up for a meaty, smokey dram – more like a highland single malt, and the palate was closer to the other offerings other than more peaty).  Don’t get me wrong, nothing objectionable in the glass, but maybe my least favorite of the three.

Rating: Stands Out

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Benromach Organic Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

Benromach Organic
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

43% ABV
$60 – $75
Website
Benromach Organic

What the Distillery Says

A WORLD FIRST when launched, even the wood we use for maturing our beautifully balanced organic single malt whisky is specially selected to nurture it to PERFECTION.

Tasting Notes
Pour yourself a dram of this beautiful Speysider, lift it to the light and notice the golden brown colour, imparted by our virgin oak casks. Even the wood we use for maturing the spirit is an intrinsic part of producing this beautifully balanced Organic Single Malt Whisky… a world-first when it was launched. With that in mind, enjoy the sumptuous AROMA WITHOUT WATER. It’s delightfully sweet and malty at first, and after a few inhalations you may detect vanilla, toffee and banana influences coming through. Enjoy the TASTE WITHOUT WATER… roll it around your mouth and savour the creamy pepper and sweet fruit flavours, particularly ripe bananas. Add a trickle of water to release the whisky and take in the AROMA WITH WATER… fresh and malty with darker, delicious hints of coffee and cocoa. You may smell some vanilla notes, and a touch of the fruit bowl coming through once again – this time with citrus fruits, especially lemons. Now for the TASTE WITH WATER… the smooth and mellow body has an exotic carnival feel with some gorgeous chilli spice and tropical fruit flavours, balanced with creaminess and a dark chocolate edge: a mouth-watering balance with a smooth and long finish. Our whisky is certified Organic from start to finish, meeting rigorous UK Soil Association standards for growing the ingredients, distillation, maturation and bottling. Unique on launch in 2006, it is still very rare today.

Matured in virgin oak casks

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla bean, subtle malty/floral notes, oak, a hint of leather; some water brings out bananas and pears.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel that sharpens, cereal sweetness with brown sugar that turns into herbal spices in the back with banana pudding; some water tamps the sharpness and introduces a hint of cocoa.
Finish:  On the shorter side, drying with vanilla and grain notes.
Comments:  The virgin oak influence is evident, with more vanilla and grain notes than the 10 year old.  Definitely more sharp and a bit more intense.  I didn’t get the earthy notes or peat that the 10 yr old has.  A bit of water brings out some fruit notes on the nose and a bit on the palate.  A very pleasant dram, but if given the choice between this and the 10 yr, I’d go with the 10 yr.

Rating: Stands Out

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Benromach 10 Yrs Old Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Benromach 10 Yrs Old
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

43% ABV
$50 – $60
Website

What the Distillery Says

Grain by grain, drop by drop, we handcraft our GORGEOUS Speyside single malt to TASTE the way whisky should from our beautiful part of Scotland.
Tasting Notes
Pour yourself a dram of Benromach – not too wee and not too big. Swirl the golden liquid around your glass and notice the AROMA WITHOUT WATER. In other words, take a sniff. Indeed, indulging in several little inhalations is the best way to pick up all the different notes… rich sherry with fruit & nut chocolate, delicate spice, green apples, malty biscuit and a touch of light peat smoke. Now sip your dram, roll the whisky around your mouth and enjoy the TASTE WITHOUT WATER… juicy raspberries and brambles, sherry, creamy malt and a light peat. Next, take in the AROMA WITH WATER… it’s a wee bit nutty with a touch of charred oak and malt, and there’s also some fancy pineapple and kiwi. Add a drop or two of water to release the full TASTE WITH WATER. Savour the succulent mouth coating and taste the toasted malt, delicate peat smoke and lingering sweet sherry… our gorgeous classic Benromach Speyside style of single malt whisky.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Caramel with poached pears, sandalwood, malt, fresh pecans, a touch of plums, hint of peat and leather.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel, barley sweetness with fruit notes that evolve into a smokey, herbal but soft spiciness.
Finish:  Moderately long, slightly drying with an earthy smokiness and hint of peat.
Comments:  This is a very nice 10 year old single malt.  Well balanced, approachable, incredibly drinkable with a lot of complexity for a 10 year old.  Bit of water opens it up nicely with some floral notes on the nose and more fruit on the palate.  If you’re a fan of Speyside single malts, I’d consider this a ‘Must Try’.

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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BenRiach 10 Years Old Single Malt

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

BenRiach 10 Years Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

43% ABV
$55-$65
Website
BenRiach 10 Yr Single Malt Scotch Whisky

What the Distillery Says

Bottled at 43% vol, the BenRiach 10 Years Old is Classic Speyside in character. The cask formula focuses on ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks – exactly the types of wood we favour at BenRiach. This fresh, lively, fruit-laden single malt captures WARM OAK SPICES, GREEN APPLE, DRIED APRICOTS, PEACH and BANANA with subtle touches of ANISEED, LEMON ZEST and BARLEY.

TASTING NOTES
COLOUR: Crisp summer gold.
NOSE: A fresh and lively combination of crisp, green orchard fruits, stem ginger and hints of tangerine mellows to creamy vanilla with a delicate note of mint and a gentle twist of citrus, all held together with a sweet barley back note.
TASTE: Warm toasted oak spices flood through green apple skins and dried apricots, ripening to hints of peach and soft banana. Subtle touches of aniseed and lemon zest create a contrasting edge to the fruit and add an intriguing character to the long, crisp barley finish.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Floral and cereal with honeysuckle, apples, pears, peaches, vanilla with a hint of lemon and cinnamon.
Palate:  Cereal sweetness with vanilla, honeyed-malt, a hint of spice (nutmeg).
Finish:  On the short side, drying with a bit of spice.
Comments:  Not objectionable, but a bit uninspiring. I prefer the nose over the palate by a fair margin. While it definitely fits into the Speyside character, it is on the thin end of that spectrum.  For the money, I’d go for a Balvenie 12 yr Double Wood or Macallan 12 yr, both of which are within $5 of the same price here in Atlanta –  but obviously different strokes for different folks.

Rating: Average

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Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside /

Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram

62.1% ABV
$160
Website
Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram
We would like to thank Paul (check out his reviews here, or on Dapper Drams) for sending us a sample to review.

What the Distillery Says

Tamdhu Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky has launched an exclusive limited edition malt, the Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram, at the 2018 Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival.

The bottling honours Dalbeallie train station, and the part the Victorian railway played in receiving Tamdhu’s precious sherry oak casks from Spain. Dalbeallie Dram is 100% matured in Oloroso sherry casks from Jerez in Southern Spain, bottled un-chill-filtered at cask strength (62.1% ABV). Only 1,000 individually numbered bottles will be made available of Collectors Journey 01 with future limited edition Dalbeallie Dram Collectors Journey releases planned annually for each Speyside Festival.

Carefully chosen by a team at the distillery, Tamdhu Dalbeallie Dram has notes of blackcurrant jam, mint tea and Bakewell tart on the nose, with sherry oak, cream soda, orange and nutmeg on the palate – then a finish of malt biscuit, dark chocolate and cinnamon. Like every bottle of Tamdhu, the rich natural colour comes from sherry casks alone.

Sandy McIntryre, Tamdhu Distillery Manager, said:

Having a new expression of Tamdhu is always exciting, and launching to guests during the Speyside Whisky Festival makes it all the more special. John Glass, our Master Blender, prepared a selection of drams for the team to nose and sample before we decided what we thought would best compliment the current Tamdhu range. We are absolutely delighted with the end result.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Rich and thick, chockful of sherry with raisins, plums, dates, figs, clove, nutmeg, allspice, worn leather, old books, pipe tobacco, mixed nuts. A bit of water brings out some caramel fudge and toffee notes along with hints of pears and apples.
Palate:  Luscious, rich and creamy with dark fruits, honey, chocolate, anise, clove, walnuts, cherries, and bits of melon. Some water brings out more chocolate with pecans and a bit of caramel.
Finish:  Long and gently drying with nutty chocolate and dark fruit.
Comments:  Wow. Just wow. This is only the second Tamdhu offering I’ve tried, and damn – this is just as delicious (maybe a touch better – and retailed for roughly half the other!). Easily one of the top three drams I tasted in 2019 (when I started my review notes). This whisky has such a rich and dense flavor, with a thick and creamy mouthfeel. It reminds me a bit of Macallan cask strength (in the glass it has that super-dark color, although a bit more brown than red by comparison), which is one of my favorites. If I had the opportunity to snag one at the $160 it was sold at, I think I’d buy multiples. Sadly unlikely to ever have a chance to buy one at anything close to that (or buy one period). This would be a contender for my Top 5 of all time, with the likes of Compass Box The General (and for those familiar with that dram and me, yes . . . it’s that good).

Rating: Must Buy

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