Hi everyone,
I’ve always been very impressed with the Benromach whiskies. They’ve all been hugely consistent in my book, scoring in the mid-high 70’s every time. Recently I’ve been placed at a few events next to them, so I’ve had a chance to try some of their new stuff and I continue to be impressed. Nothing has blown me away yet but the consistently good whisky is a big plus.
I’m also learning it can have some lovely Springbank type notes to it too.
I did also got a chance to try the 35 year old too, but didn’t have time to make notes. Great stuff, but please do it at cask strength you fools!
Benromach Triple Distilled 50%
Colour: Straw
Body: Light/Medium
Nose: Light and very fresh, could be Glen Grant. Watermelon, melon, under ripe mango, kumquat?, cream.
Taste: Nice abv, light but lots there. That melon and under ripe mango thing from the nose, natural yoghurt, some young spice.
Finish: Medium length. More natural yoghurt and melon.
Distilled 2009, bottled 2017. This is a little to light for my taste, although the quality is here. Very Glen Grant-esque with the light and delicate flavours.
70/100
Benromach Chateau Cissac Finish 45%
Colour: Amber
Body: Full
Nose: Bloody good. Slightly dirty, soot and well integrated red fruit from the wine. Could be a Springbank. Candy floss brings freshness.
Taste: Lacking power to start then overly spicy and tannic from the French oak maybe? A little soot and red apple. A bit flat here though.
Finish: Medium length. Great. Lovely red apple and black pepper combo. A little like an older Talisker.
Distilled 2009, bottled 2017. Chateau Cissac is a Bordeaux I’m familiar with as I’ve got a couple of bottles. It’s in the Haut-Medoc and uses mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, giving you a bit more tannin normally. The tannin doesn’t really come through on this though, which is probably a good thing.
Lovely nose and finish, but the taste is completely different and not nearly as good, which is a shame. Still, one of my favourites of the range so far!
77/100
Benromach 2008 Single Cask for Itlay 61%
Colour: Straw
Body: Full
Nose: The Springbank of Speyside! Chalky, sooty and austere. Some yellow apple, chimney soot, no youth or abv. White pepper.
Water: Remains austere. Nose doesn't change too much.
Taste: Soft, great arrival, sour lemon, lemon peel, chalky, citrus, a little orange, some soot, black and white pepper, a bit of grapefruit.
Water: Spicier but unbalances a bit.
Finish: Medium length. Some chalk and soot, then tingling. Spicier and longer with water.
Bottled 2016. A bit spicy with water, this is better neat. Really, this reminds me very much of the Springbank local barley. Which, of course, is a good thing. Great pick from the guys over in Itlay.
80/100
Benromach Peat Smoke 2017 46%
Colour: Straw
Body: Medium
Nose: Fresh juicy pear, slight barnyard but not much overt peat. Subtle minerality and melon.
Taste: Soft, light, melon, then green apple and black pepper, light smoke and subtle mineral notes. Ginger.
Finish: Medium length. Suddenly very peaty with very salty lemon juice.
47ppm. Distilled 2008, bottled 2017. Similar style to the triple distilled. Quite light and delicate for how peaty it is meant to be. Bloody Ppm doesn’t tell you anything, eh?
72/100
Thanks for reading!
Scotch Reviews #514-#517
Whisky Network Reviews #606-#609
Network Average: 74.6
Best Score: 92
Worst Score: 22
0-49 Terrible
50-59 Bad
60-64 Just About OK
65-69 Ok to Good
70-74 Good
75-79 Very Good
80-84 Excellent
85-89 Superb
90+ Magnificent
Full Disclosure Disclaimer: I currently work as a Brand Ambassador for Penderyn Distillery. The views expressed here are purely my own and do not reflect the views of Penderyn Distillery or The Welsh Whisky Company. I try to maintain as much objectivity as I can but feel free to take my reviews with as big a pinch of salt as you like. Furthermore, my rating scale is NOT based on a Parker type wine scoring scale or a school/college/university % or A-F grade score. You can find more on my scoring here. I apologise for any seemly low or 'bad' scores given with my system and am sorry I can't say only nice things. Please keep in mind that I am ethically compromised and am unable to produce 100% unbiased reviews.
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