Whisky : Benriach 11 Year; Wally’s Cask Selection (Cask 8637)

Country/Region : Scotland/Speyside

ABV : 61.2%

Cask : Moscatel Hogshead

Age : 11 Year (Distilled 1 Dec. 2006, Bottled 2018)

Nose : Toasted grain and fresh cut fruit.  Sweet malty sugars, honey drenched oats, bran, and fresh cut strawberries.  Musty wood in a rarely opened dusty attic, sweet breakfast cereal, and raisins.

Palate : Medium bodied with a sharp hit of sweet honey.  Slightly nutty and dry with candied almonds and cashews.  Malty and sweet with whole wheat toast, cranberry rolls, pastry icing, and tangy black sugar.  Faint bit of sulphur and funk on the back end that are quickly smothered by caramelized sugars and cinnamon that reminded the wife of “shoo fly pie.”

Finish :  Lingering sugar cookies and dry spices.

Score : 5

Mental Image : Kouigan-amann

Something Better : Arran Amarone Cask Finish (more fruity, same almond like nutty astringency)

Something Similar : Michel Couvreur Overaged (similar malt/almond, more astringent/pastry)

Something Worse : Yellow Spot Single Pot Still (similar nutty/sugar notes, less body, more candy)

Notes : Loads of malty sugars with hints of fruit and a nice dose of wood, this Benriach was really interesting to compare to its sister cask, bottled for Fujioka, the following year.  These casks were remarkably similar, while my notes do not quite have the exact same descriptors, they essentially hit most of the same high points.  I scored the Fujioka’s bottle a hair higher as it had a bit more depth, though I did think the sweetness level was more manageable on the Wally’s.  While neither cask hit the sort of flavor profile that I go for, they were still enjoyable, though perhaps in small doses.  If you love a sweet honeyed dram, then this will likely hold some appeal as its chock full of honeyed pastries.  Overall, this was a fine a sipper and I would be happy to accept a glass, but I am not sure I would be pulling the trigger at $120 a bottle.