Whisky : Benrinnes 19 Year SMWS 36.168 “Fruity, Earthy, & Exciting”

Country/Region : Scotland/Speyside

ABV : 56.6%

Cask : Ex-Bourbon, First Fill Moscatel

Age : 19 Years (Distilled 31 May 2000)

Nose :  Brown sugar, walnut, and fruit punch.  Notes of cinnamon and clove spiced apple sauce, wood varnish, and crisp citrus wove in and out.  Fruit built slowly into heaps of thick jammy berries drizzled over malty toast.

Palate :  Thick and syrupy with a sweet, fruity, and slightly funky profile.  Dried berries in dark treacle flooded the senses along with funkier notes of rancio and minerality which faded with time.  Pleasant spicy notes of dried ginger, cinnamon sticks, and bergamot hinted at a high end cologne.  Leathery notes lurked in the background but came out strongly on the backend with juniper and herbs.  A few drops of water brought the herbs more to the fore along with a mustiness.

Finish : Long and lingering, slightly dry, with brown sugar, fruits, and herbs.

Score : 6

Mental Image : Cologne Shopping

Notes :  My first Benrinnes and a really interesting bottle.  This was a bit sweet for my taste as the saccharine Moscatel played a major role in the proceedings.  There were interesting notes of rancio and faint sulphur that came through and balanced nicely against the herbal notes at the end.  Some water smoothed this one out and highlighted some of those interesting herbal and juniper notes.  This was not really my thing, but it was fun to try and I would not mind sipping on this any time someone wants to pour it.  I will definitely look forward to trying some more Benrinnes to get a better feel for the distillery’s base malt.

Overall, a bottle that pulled in lots of different flavor directions without having notes clash or muddle one another.  This was thick and syrupy and I have no doubt sherry fans would find a lot to love in it.

For another perspective on the bottle check out this review my friend Scotch & Sheen.