Review by: The Muskox
This whisky was part of a tasting of the SMWS’s 2024 Festival Releases at the famous Jack Rose Dining Saloon in Washington, DC, alongside fellow Malt Runner rye_am_legend!
Distillery: Benriach.
Bottler: Scotch Malt Whisky Society.
Region: Speyside.
ABV: 58.4%. Cask strength.
Age: 10 years. Distilled August 2013. Bottled in 2024.
Cask type: Matured in a combination of second-fill ex-bourbon barrels and new oak high-toast/medium-char barrels.
Price: $130 USD from the SMWS.
Color: Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.
Nose: Demerara syrup, flamed spices, and strong sweet oak.
Palate: Thick texture. Arrives with rich oak straight away, along with burnt sugar and chocolate covered strawberries. Develops very oaky and spicy, cumin and sumac. There’s a strong wood-smoke note here, we were asking ourselves if this could be peated.
Finish: Long and intense, loads of oak char. Burnt sugar, flamed orange peel, and Angostura bitters.
Possible SMWS bottling name: “Thank-you bonbons for the flooring crew”
Conclusion: Absolutely an improvement over that Auchentoshan. This kind of heavy-virgin-American-oak is really not my preferred style, but this one does pretty well. Great mouthfeel and a long spicy finish, if you’re into that sort of thing.
Final Score: 77.
Scoring Legend:
- 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
- 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
- 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
- 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
- 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
- 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
- 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
- 50-59: Save it for mixing.
- 0-49: Blech.
Malt Runners 