BenRiach 2010/2022 Mossburn 11 years old Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whiskey 70 cl 62.5%

Sixty-two point five per cent. That is not a figure you arrive at by accident after eleven years, and it means the cask stood dry and cool the whole way. Not a drop of water has been added, and you notice from the first sip.

The expert's description

BenRiach 2010/2022 Mossburn Vintage Casks 11 years is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a refill Pedro Ximenez hogshead and bottled at 62.5 % cask strength without chill filtration and without added colour.

Vintage Casks is the Mossburn range for single casks, where the wood is selected by Master Blender Neil MacLeod Mathieson. The whisky went into cask on 1 December 2010 and was drawn on 7 November 2022, and the cask yielded 310 bottles.

A refill Pedro Ximenez cask is an interesting decision. First fill PX can easily take over a whisky with its heavy sweetness, but a cask used before gives more sparingly and lets the malty core of BenRiach come through. The bottling is exclusive to Whisky.dk.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dark fruit, raisin and brown sugar with a powerful alcohol warmth on top. Behind it sit malt and spiced oak.

Palate

Very powerful and concentrated with prune, date and dark chocolate. The sweetness of the PX cask meets a warm, almost peppery edge.

Finish

Very long and warm with dried fruit, spice and a dry close.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach 2010/2022 Mossburn Vintage Casks 11 år
Distillery: BenRiach
Bottler: Mossburn
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 11 years
ABV: 62,5 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Refill Pedro Ximenez hogshead, batch no. 01.1210.SC39
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 1 December 2010
Bottled: 7 November 2022
Number of bottles: 310
Edition: Vintage Casks
EAN no.: 5060033847589

Flavour profile

Cask strength · Sherry matured · Dark fruit · Spiced · Full bodied

Investment potential

High. Three hundred and ten bottles from a single cask, released exclusively to one market, is a combination that cannot be repeated. The Mossburn Vintage Casks are made in small runs and disappear again quickly.

Did you know?

Pedro Ximenez is the sweetest of the sherry styles, made from grapes dried in the sun before pressing. The sugar content is so high that the wine is close to syrup, which is why PX casks leave such a clear mark on whisky.

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Frequently asked questions about BenRiach 2010/2022 Mossburn 11 years

Is 62.5 per cent too strong to drink?

Not if you treat it properly. Pour a small measure into a whisky glass, taste it neat, then add water a few drops at a time. At that strength the whisky shifts markedly with even small additions.

What does a refill PX cask mean?

That the cask held Pedro Ximenez and then whisky at least once before. It gives a more restrained sweetness than a first fill PX cask, which otherwise tends to drown the spirit.

Who are Mossburn?

An independent bottler with warehousing in Scotland, who also run the Torabhaig distillery on Skye. Vintage Casks is their range for single casks, selected by Master Blender Neil MacLeod Mathieson.

How many bottles exist?

Three hundred and ten. The cask is empty and the bottling cannot be repeated.

Why is it so strong after eleven years?

Because the cask lay in a dry and cool warehouse, where water evaporates faster than alcohol. Under other conditions the strength would have fallen considerably more over the same period.

Does it suit a beginner?

No, not as a first single malt. At 62.5 per cent it asks for both patience and water. It is for someone who already knows their own threshold and enjoys working with a glass.