Whisky: Benrinnes 22 Year SMWS 36.169 “Poached pears”

Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside

ABV: 57.5%

Cask: 2nd Fill Bourbon Barrel

Age: 22 Years (Distilled 15 Aug. 1997)

Nose: Weathered oak, digestive biscuits, brown sugar, dry baking spices, subtle fruit with apricot and tangerine, mellow herbal tobacco and thyme.

Palate:  Medium-bodied, oily, butter, citrus, brown sugar, candied nuts, dry almond pastry, herbal tobacco and thyme, drying oak at the end.

Finish: Medium-length with orchard fruit and brown sugar.

Score: 5-6

Mental Image: Lumberyard Tea Time

Narrative & Notes: A stroll through a restoration lumber yard, the aroma was loaded with sawdust and weathered oak beams. Tea break at the lumber yard? Digestif biscuits, brown sugar, baking spices, and a spread of apricot and tangerine scones arrived with herbal notions of tea, tobacco, and thyme following shortly behind. Hints of walnut and maple completed the scene. Medium-bodied and oily, the malt was almost glassy or buttery on the palate with orange zest, brown sugar, candied nuts, and dry almond pastries. Oaky and herbal toward the back end with tobacco, thyme, tea, and a drying oak that varied between freshly stained lumber and sawdust. Hints of fruit remained mainly in the background with pears and green apples. The finish was medium-length and slightly drying with orchard fruits and brown sugar.

This Benrinnes bore a close resemblance to another I tried with its herbal and oak-driven profile. I expected a lot more fruit on this considering the SMWS name; instead, I was left chewing on walnut maple scones and sipping on a slightly bitter cup of black tea. Those herbal and oak notes veered toward bitterness at the end, which did not pair exceptionally well with the drying quality that carried on through the finish.

Overall, while the mouthfeel was excellent— an attribute I associate with Benrinnes, the flavor profile was not to my taste, especially on the back end. I double-checked the official SMWS notes after I typed this up; I was curious if they bore any semblance to mine. I was surprised they were not terribly different, though SMWS highlighted more fruit in the driver’s seat. Not sure how the fruit ended up MIA in my glass, but between three different tastings, some months apart, I never found them.