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Benriach 10 Year Old

Average score from 2 reviews and 7 ratings 86

Benriach 10 Year Old

Product details

  • Brand: BenRiach
  • Bottler: Distillery Bottling
  • ABV: 43.0%
  • Age: 10 year old

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@RianC
Benriach 10 Year Old

As the title suggests, and I've mentioned more than once on here of late, I've been looking for a good whisk(e)y that really suits the warm weather. I opened a couple of bottles prior to this that have been OK but not quite hit the spot. This does. I'm pleasantly surprised by this little beauty.

Bottle has been open almost two weeks and, I'm a little embarrassed to say, is about three quarters full. Review is from a 30 ml pour in a Taylor D Milestone glass that's sat about ten minutes. Neat.

Nose: Boy has this opened up lovely in the short time it's been popped. Creamy, lemony sweet and pithy, toffee'd malt. There's berry sweetness, apples, something exotic- mild pineapple and papaya. Satsuma, yes, definitely. There's also a dunnage/damp earth funk note that really works here and some dried fruit - raisins. Quite spicy too with dried orange and a touch of cinnamon. A tad nippy but fine.

Taste: Even at 43% this is quite concentrated. Like a soft, fruity jam but with a little nip. I'm adding two drops of water. The water brings more oak on the nose but it also mellows it all out a bit and takes out the wee nip! There's a fruit salad burst but balanced nicely with the sour lemon pith and spices.

Finish: Short - Medium. The fruit salad clings on as does the spice but softly so. That slight 'funk' note also slowly comes out. Some gentle tannins. Very nice.

This bottle was distilled under Billy Walker's ownership and is a few years old now, but I imagine current bottles are still pretty similar. I also suspect there's some older whisky in here which would account for the more aged warehouse type notes. Who knows though? Either way, this is a great summer whisky (well anytime, really) as it has a soft, fruity style but is then backed up with some character and complexity - it is very, very drinkable but always rewarding! A very well put together malt and like Benromach 10 - does very well for its age.

@Wierdo - Oh I definitely enjoyed the Benromach 10 a lot more relaxed Good to hear about the Ben Nevis too - I'm thinking about opening my bottle soon. What's it like?

@RianC I only opened the Ben Nevis 10 last weekend and have only had a couple of drams. But I'm very impressed so far. I'll post a review when I get into it a bit more. It's just a real powerhouse of a Highland whisky.

@Hewie It's a wine oxidizer. This thing.

amazon.co.uk/dp/B071JM7FG3/…

I brought it about a month ago. It wasn't very expensive. I've only used it on the Ben Riach so far. What I decided was of I have a whisky I'm not enjoying with an off note I'll try putting a glass through the oxidizer. If that improves it, I'll put the rest of the bottle through. Which is what I did when I was getting that bitter note on the arrival with the Ben Riach and it worked. I've not used it on anything else yet.

Ironically I'd never heard of aerator until I saw it in the ralfy review of Ben Nevis 10. But I've not used it on my bottle of that as I don't think it needs it.

@Nock

(c.1990’s) bought and opened 7/5/2013

I found this bottle on the bottom shelf of a store in Myrtle Beach. It still had the old price of $39.90 on the bottle. This is that old Benriach 10yo that was produced by Seagrams – using their own floor maltings – in the 1980’s and 1990’s prior to it being bought by the BenRiach Distiller Company Limited in 2004 (the distillery hardly worked after Pernod Ricard took over from 2001 and it was mothballed in 2002). My guess is that this bottle hit the shelf here in the states in the late 90’s early 2000’s which means it has been on that shelf for over 10 years . . . and boy was it dusty. This is an example (unlike the Willett and Thomas H. Handy) where I learned my lesson and bought the last two bottles they had there. And boy am I glad I did!

Nose: Light creamed corn, hay, wheat, and oats. Some fruit as well: pears, green grapes, and a light note of pineapple. This is very sweet with a touch of floral notes and citrus in the background. And in the very far back you get a whisper of smoke and a hint of peat. Very nice. This has a sharpness and a thickness to the nose that seem old . . . and vintage (maybe that is just my mind). However, putting up against two other newer BenRaich bottles . . . it does seem from a different era.

Taste: Sweet grist of corn, hay, wheat, oats, hay and green apples. Very nice mouth feel: mostly smooth with a bit of an edge. It is like the dark and dirty muscle bound cousin of Glenfiddich.

Finish: A medium splash wave of corn, hay, and apples and it dissolves into a nice medium long drone of ancient oak that use to house peated scotch and once was charred . . . but it was so very long ago. It is a long slow subtle fade. That hint of peat tinges the apples, the corn, the hay, the grass, and the oak in a very nice way with a hint of a bite. I like it . . . seriously, there is something here that really reminds me of old Clynelish and Brora . . . maybe an old sour waxiness? Who knows, but I love the finish!

Complexity, Balance: More complexity then I expected quite honestly. The balance was also very decent for a 10yo that wasn’t cared for by the previous owners. This is one of those bottles that got a bad rap, but actually has a lot to offer.

Aesthetic experience: Very plain packaging and label – almost too plain. Easily overlooked grabbing for a trendy Glen or an Islay . . . pity.

Conclusion: Don’t be fooled by my score. I actually like this quite a lot. It does lose points in the aesthetic department (and complexity). But the nose and the finish are amazing. I am really beginning to believe in Old Bottle Effect - I think whisky really does continue to mature and age in the bottle. I have to be honest, it could be the old bottle effect on me – that said, I really think this has a very different taste then modern 10yo scotches being produced in the Highlands. I really like this style, and am stoked I have a second bottle as I am down to only 4 fingers left of this guy

Interesting story and malt, thanks for sharing. I really wonder how this compares to recent bottlings. And yes, the objective vs. subjective interpretation of the Old Bottle Effect is worthy of a social science study...

I've just seen your review at the bottom of mine and whilst they are different bottlings I have to say that this line

"It is like the dark and dirty muscle bound cousin of Glenfiddich."

is a great way of putting it. Not a big fan of Glenfiddich but this is like what I imagine a good, 'approachable' whisky should be all about.

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