There is whisky you read about and whisky you drink. This belongs to the second kind. It has no ambition of ending up in a collection, and that is exactly why it has stayed on the shelf for close to two hundred years.

The expert's description

Bell's Original is a Blended Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 40 %.

The story starts in Perth in 1825, where Thomas Sandeman opened a spirits business. Arthur Bell joined in 1851 and made blending the heart of the trade, and his name is still on the bottle. Through the 1970s and 1980s Bell's was the best selling blend in Britain.

The backbone of the blend is Blair Athol in Pitlochry, which the house took over in 1933. Malt from a number of other distilleries joins it along with grain whisky, and the result is deliberately kept light and approachable rather than complex.

Tasting notes

Nose

Fresh and light with green apple, cereal and a suggestion of vanilla. A dry malt note sits behind.

Palate

Mild and smooth with honey and pale cereal. The malt peeks through halfway without taking up room.

Finish

Short and clean with a last touch of malt.

Specifications

Name: Bell's Original
Distillery: Bell's
Region/Country: Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
EAN no.: 5000387905474

Flavour profile

Light · Fresh · Soft · Malty · Cereal

Did you know?

Arthur Bell refused for years to put his own name on the bottles, believing the whisky should speak for itself. It was his sons who put the name on the label after his death in 1900.

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Glencoe is the glen where the mountains close in on the road and the light only reaches the bottom for a couple of hours a day. A whisky carrying the name of that valley is not supposed to be light. It is meant to hold some of the same weight, and it does.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 10 Glencoe is a Blended Malt Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration.

A blended malt consists purely of malt whisky from several distilleries, meaning no grain whisky at all. Glencoe is built on malt from the Ben Nevis distillery at the foot of the highest mountain in Scotland and is bottled with ten years as the guaranteed minimum age.

The 46 % and the absence of chill filtration are chosen to keep the oils in the whisky. That gives a thicker texture and a more complex nose than an equivalent blended malt at 40 % would carry, and it is one reason the bottling has stayed in the range.

Tasting notes

Nose

Ripe banana and orange marmalade first, then spiced oak and toasted nuts.

Palate

Soft and mouth filling with an elegant fruit sweetness. Orange and banana step forward first, then spice and dark chocolate add depth.

Finish

Long and soft, with chocolate and spiced notes travelling together all the way out.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 10 år Glencoe
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Blended Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Edition: Glencoe

Flavour profile

Fruity · Spiced · Full bodied · Nutty · Soft

Did you know?

The Ben Nevis distillery was founded in 1825 by John Macdonald, known as Long John for his height. The name was later sold on as a trademark and ended up on a whisky quite different from what the distillery makes itself.

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Ben Nevis has never tried to be elegant. The spirit is heavy, waxy and a shade unpolished, and that is exactly why the Japanese bought the distillery. They wanted raw material with muscle, not with manners.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 10 years is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in bourbon casks and sherry casks and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The distillery sits in Fort William at the foot of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland, and has been running since 1825. Nikka bought it in 1989, and a large share of production has found its way into Japanese blends since, which has made official bottlings a smaller part of the house than at most others.

The ten year old is the standing release of the distillery and one of the clearest expressions of the house style. The combination of bourbon and sherry casks gives both honey and dried fruit, but it is the weight of the spirit itself that carries the whisky, not the wood.

Tasting notes

Nose

A flower shop, honey and citrus fruit, with cream toffee behind. A faintly waxy note sits under it all.

Palate

Spiced at the start with a turn towards honeyed sweetness. Spice and acidity give a warm feel in the mouth, and the texture is thick without being heavy.

Finish

Long and powerful with dark chocolate and spice.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 10 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon casks and sherry casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
EAN no.: 5026673000234

Flavour profile

Full bodied · Honeyed · Spiced · Waxy · Fruity

Did you know?

Ben Nevis supplied new make spirit to Japan for many years, where it was matured and later sold on as Japanese whisky. That was entirely legal at the time, and binding rules for what may be called Japanese whisky only arrived in 2021.

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Twenty-five years in cask, the final thirty months of them in Oloroso. That is a long time to let a whisky work, and longer still to wait and find out whether the decision was right. The Italians at Wilson & Morgan have a habit of getting it right.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 1996/2021 Wilson & Morgan 25 years is a Highland Single Malt Whisky matured in casks no. 1819 and 1820, finished in Oloroso sherry casks for 30 months and bottled at 52.1 %.

Wilson & Morgan is an Italian whisky house, run by the Rossi family from Treviso since 1992. The house is known for buying casks early, letting them lie long and finishing them in carefully chosen sherry wood, and that method suits Ben Nevis well, since its spirit carries the weight needed to take the treatment.

The whisky was distilled in 1996 and bottled in 2021 from two casks kept together throughout. The thirty months in Oloroso are not a short finish but a genuine second maturation, and it reads clearly in the dark fruit and the spice.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dark fruit, walnut and orange peel, with a waxy undertone from the spirit and a hint of leather.

Palate

Powerful and dense with fig, raisin and bitter chocolate. The sherry takes up room, but the Ben Nevis weight holds back and lets the spice come through.

Finish

Very long and dry with dark fruit, tobacco and a warm spiced close.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 1996/2021 Wilson & Morgan 25 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Wilson & Morgan
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Whisky
Age: 25 years
ABV: 52,1 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Casks no. 1819 and 1820, finished in Oloroso sherry casks for 30 months
Distilled: 1996
Bottled: 2021

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Full bodied · Spiced · Waxy · Dry

Investment potential

High. Twenty-five year old Ben Nevis bottlings are scarce, because most of the 1990s spirit went into blends, and Wilson & Morgan releases from that decade are sought after by collectors of Italian bottlings.

Did you know?

Italy was the largest single malt market in Europe through the 1970s and 1980s, long before the British discovered the category themselves. It is one reason several of the finest old casks today carry Italian names on the label.

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A refill hogshead gives up very little. It has been used before, the sugar layers are spent, and so it takes twenty-six years to reach where a first fill cask would have been at ten. In return, what you taste is the spirit and not the wood.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 1998/2025 Lady of the Glen 26 years is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in a refill hogshead, cask no. 176, and bottled at 43.2 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The whisky was distilled on 11 May 1998 and bottled on 4 April 2025. The cask yielded 276 bottles, and the strength of 43.2 % is what the cask gave after twenty-six years rather than the result of dilution. That says something about how long it lay and how much evaporated along the way.

Lady of the Glen is run by Gregor Hannah under Hannah Whisky Merchants and works consistently with natural colour, no chill filtration and bottling at the strength the cask offers. It is a line that lets the character of the distillery come through, and with Ben Nevis that is precisely the point.

Tasting notes

Nose

Tropical fruit with pineapple and passion fruit up front, then sweet malt and light pastry.

Palate

Soft and balanced with fruity sweetness, a creamy texture and discreet spice. The low cask strength makes it remarkably easy to drink for its age.

Finish

Long, warm and complex with fruit, malt and a last touch of oak.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 1998/2025 Lady of the Glen 26 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Lady of the Glen
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 26 years
ABV: 43,2 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Refill hogshead, cask no. 176
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 11 May 1998
Bottled: 4 April 2025
Number of bottles: 276

Flavour profile

Tropical fruit · Soft · Creamy · Malty · Lightly spiced

Investment potential

High. Twenty-six years in cask, 276 bottles and a single refill hogshead is a combination that cannot be repeated. Lady of the Glen has built a steady following among single cask collectors, and their older Ben Nevis casks disappear quickly.

Did you know?

A hogshead holds around 250 litres and is typically rebuilt from 200 litre American bourbon barrels by adding extra staves. The slightly larger volume gives a lower wood to liquid ratio, so the whisky matures more slowly.

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A Japanese koi carp swims across the label. That is not decorative filler. Ben Nevis shipped new make spirit to Japan for decades, where it was matured and later sold on under a different flag, and Little Brown Dog chose to put that story on the bottle rather than leave it alone.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 1999/2025 Little Brown Dog 26 years is a Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a 2nd fill bourbon hogshead and bottled at 50.5 %.

The whisky was distilled on 24 June 1999 and bottled on 30 June 2025, twenty-six years later almost to the day. The cask yielded 220 bottles and there are no others. A 2nd fill hogshead gives up its influence slowly, so after this long it is the structure of the spirit rather than the wood that carries the whisky.

Little Brown Dog was founded in 2018 in Aberdeenshire by two men who left steady jobs to work with spirits. The house is known for full transparency about process and origin, and their single casks are chosen for character rather than for the name of the distillery.

Tasting notes

Nose

Ripe fruit, honey and cereal with a clear touch of citrus oil.

Palate

An extra layer of warmth and depth with pineapple tart, crisp puff pastry, nutmeg, toffee and vanilla.

Finish

Soft and lightly mineral with fine balance and a long, calm close.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 1999/2025 Little Brown Dog 26 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Little Brown Dog
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 26 years
ABV: 50,5 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 2nd fill bourbon hogshead
Distilled: 24 June 1999
Bottled: 30 June 2025
Number of bottles: 220
Edition: Single Cask

Flavour profile

Tropical fruit · Honeyed · Full bodied · Mineral · Cask strength

Investment potential

High. Twenty-six year old Ben Nevis from a single cask in 220 bottles cannot be recreated, and 1990s spirit grows scarcer, since most of it went into blends and to Japan at the time.

Did you know?

In the 1960s Ben Nevis experimented with combining malt and grain spirit before maturation and letting them age together in the same cask. The method is called blended at birth and has scarcely been used by any other Scottish distillery.

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A sherry butt holds around five hundred litres, twice what an ordinary cask carries. That means less wood surface per drop and a slower, more measured maturation. Eleven years does not sound like much, but in a butt they count differently.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2011/2023 Hepburn's Choice 11 years is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in a sherry butt and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The cask was filled in 2011 and drawn in 2023, yielding 880 bottles. That is a high outturn, but it follows from a cask of that size, and it also means the bottling actually reached an audience rather than vanishing within a week.

Hepburn's Choice is a range from Hunter Laing, the family firm behind Ardnahoe on Islay among others. The range consists purely of single casks bottled at 46 % without filtration or colouring, and it is intended as the honest working series of the house rather than as prestige releases.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dried fig, walnut and a dry sherry note. Behind it sit malt and a suggestion of orange peel.

Palate

Full and dry with raisin, cocoa and spiced oak. The Ben Nevis weight keeps the sherry in check rather than giving way to it.

Finish

Long and dry with nut, dark chocolate and a warm note of spice.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2011/2023 Hepburn's Choice 11 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Hepburn's Choice
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 11 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Sherry butt
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2011
Bottled: 2023
Number of bottles: 880
Edition: Single Cask

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Dry · Nutty · Full bodied · Spiced

Investment potential

Medium. The bottling comes from one cask and cannot be remade, but the 880 bottles make it less scarce than most single casks. The Hunter Laing ranges hold a steady position among collectors of independent bottlings.

Did you know?

Hunter Laing was split off from Douglas Laing in 2013, when brothers Stewart and Fred Laing divided the family firm between them. Stewart took the single cask stocks with him and later built Ardnahoe on Islay.

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The Warehouse Tasting bottles are drawn straight from the Cadenhead warehouse in Campbeltown and filled for the tastings held on site. You rarely meet them anywhere other than with a glass in hand between the casks.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2012/2021 Cadenhead's 9 years Warehouse Tasting is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in a Manzanilla hogshead, finished from 2020 and bottled at 56.7 % cask strength without chill filtration and without added colour.

Wm Cadenhead is the oldest independent bottler in Scotland, founded in Aberdeen in 1842 and based today in Campbeltown next door to Springbank. The Warehouse Tasting series consists of a small handful of casks each year, chosen for the tastings the house runs itself, and they are bottled raw and unadjusted.

Manzanilla is a dry sherry from Sanlucar de Barrameda on the Atlantic coast, and the cask gives a saltier, more mineral influence than an Oloroso would. The Ben Nevis went into the cask in 2020 after eight years in its original wood, and the combination of dry sherry and the oily weight of the distillery is unusual.

Tasting notes

Nose

Salted almond, dry hay and a sharp mineral note. Behind it sit oily malt and a touch of green apple.

Palate

Powerful and dry with salted nut, lemon peel and an oily middle. The cask strength bites, but the whisky has the body to carry it.

Finish

Long, dry and salty with a lingering mineral edge.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2012/2021 Cadenhead's 9 år Warehouse Tasting
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Cadenhead's
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 9 years
ABV: 56,7 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Manzanilla hogshead, finished from 2020
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2012
Bottled: 2021
Edition: Warehouse Tasting

Flavour profile

Dry · Maritime · Mineral · Nutty · Cask strength

Investment potential

High. Warehouse Tasting bottlings are made in very small quantities for the Cadenhead tastings and rarely reach normal distribution. The combination of Ben Nevis and a Manzanilla cask makes it harder still to replace.

Did you know?

Cadenhead has never put a distillery logo or house colours on its labels. The firm uses the same sober template for everything, whether the contents come from an obscure distillery or from one of the best known names in Scotland.

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Seven years is young for a Highland malt, and that is exactly why it is interesting. The cask has not taken charge yet, and the raw, oily character of the Ben Nevis spirit still stands and fills the glass on its own.

Please note: There is rust on the cap of the bottle. It does not affect the contents, but it is worth knowing before you order.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2013/2021 Signatory Vintage 7 years is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in hogsheads, casks no. 414 and 415, and bottled at 46 %.

The bottling is assembled from two hogsheads that were kept together and drawn as one. That does not make it a single cask, but the outturn is still small, and the two casks were chosen because they pulled in the same direction.

Signatory Vintage was founded in Edinburgh in 1988 by Andrew Symington and has been based at the Edradour distillery in Pitlochry since 2002. The house is known for bottling young casks where the style of the distillery is still clear, rather than banking on age alone.

Tasting notes

Nose

Fresh barley, green apple and a lightly oily note. Vanilla and hay sit behind it.

Palate

Young and direct with malt, lemon peel and a powerful cereal core. The oak stays discreet and lets the spirit talk.

Finish

Medium, dry and malty with a light peppery edge.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2013/2021 Signatory Vintage 7 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 7 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Hogshead, casks no. 414 and 415
Distilled: 2013
Bottled: 2021

Flavour profile

Malty · Fresh · Dry · Oily · Youthful

Did you know?

Signatory bought Edradour in 2002, at the time the smallest distillery in Scotland with two men in production. The house moved its bottling there and today runs both distillery and bottling business from the same address in Pitlochry.

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Eight years and one month between filling and bottling. Signatory notes the dates precisely, down to the day, and that is not pedantry. It is the kind of information that makes it possible to understand why two bottles from the same distillery taste different.

Please note: The cap on the bottle is rusty. It has no bearing on the whisky inside, but we would rather say so up front.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2013/2021 Signatory Vintage 8 years is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in hogsheads, casks no. 427 and 429, and bottled at 46 %.

The whisky went into cask on 17 October 2013 and was drawn on 19 November 2021. Two hogsheads were bottled together, which gives a slightly larger outturn than a single cask, but it remains a limited release from two casks that lay side by side.

This and the seven year old sister bottling come from the same distillation day. The difference lies purely in which casks were chosen and when they were drawn, which makes the pair an unusually good exercise in what a single year in cask actually means.

Tasting notes

Nose

Malt, pear and pale oak with a note of melted butter. A hint of wet stone sits behind it.

Palate

Rounder than the seven year old with honey, cereal and a touch of cinnamon. The oily texture is still there, but the edges have been worn down a little.

Finish

Medium and warm with malt, oak and a dry close.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2013/2021 Signatory Vintage 8 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 8 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Hogshead, casks no. 427 and 429
Distilled: 17 October 2013
Bottled: 19 November 2021
EAN no.: 5021944116133

Flavour profile

Malty · Honeyed · Soft · Oily · Lightly spiced

Did you know?

Signatory has printed the distillation date and the bottling date on the label from the start. That was far from normal in 1988, when most bottlers made do with an age statement, and the practice has since spread across the trade.

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The bottle sits low and broad with a short neck, closer to an apothecary jar than a whisky bottle. Signatory has used that shape for its Decanter Collection for years, and it stands out on the shelf against everything else in the range.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2014 Signatory Vintage 8 years Decanter Collection is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in Oloroso sherry butts and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The Decanter Collection is the Signatory range in the distinctive broad bottle. The series holds a fixed bottling strength of 46 %, and casks are chosen for their ability to carry sherry influence without the distillery style disappearing. This whisky was distilled in 2014 and lay eight years in cask.

Sherry butts hold around 500 litres, giving a lower wood to liquid ratio than smaller casks. Maturation is therefore slower and more restrained, and after eight years the weight of the Ben Nevis spirit still sits clearly beneath the dried fruit.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dried fig, raisin and walnut with a dry sherry edge. Behind it sit malt and a suggestion of dark chocolate.

Palate

Full and dry with dark fruit, nut and spiced oak. The oily core of the spirit keeps the sherry in check all the way through.

Finish

Long and dry with nut, cocoa and a warm note of spice.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2014 Signatory Vintage 8 år Decanter Collection
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 8 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oloroso sherry butts
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2014
Edition: The Decanter Collection
EAN no.: 5021944124923

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Dry · Nutty · Full bodied · Spiced

Did you know?

The Signatory Decanter Collection uses a bottle shape originally used for pharmacy goods and spices. The form makes the bottle heavy and low, and it takes more room in the case, which is why few other bottlers have copied it.

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A 2nd fill cask has already given away most of its colour and sweetness once. What remains comes slowly, which is why nine years in a used Oloroso butt tastes like something other than nine years in fresh wood.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2014 Signatory Vintage 9 years Decanter Collection is a Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 2nd fill Oloroso sherry butts and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The whisky was distilled in 2014 and lay nine years in cask. The casks held sherry and then whisky once before, which gives a more measured influence than first fill wood would. The result is a balance between fruity shades and spiced notes rather than a heavy sherry bomb.

There is a sister bottling in the same series from the same vintage, drawn a year earlier. Compared with that one this has had a little more time to gather itself, and the difference between the two is one of the clearest examples of what a single extra year in a butt does.

Tasting notes

Nose

Raisin, orange peel and a hint of almond. The sherry is clear but bright and dry rather than heavy.

Palate

Rich and harmonious with dried fruit, spice and a malt core carrying it all. There is depth without heaviness.

Finish

Long and spiced with fruit and a dry, nutty close.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2014 Signatory Vintage 9 år Decanter Collection
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 9 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 2nd fill Oloroso sherry butts
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2014
Edition: The Decanter Collection
EAN no.: 5021944127061

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Fruity · Spiced · Balanced · Dry

Did you know?

A cask can in practice be used three or four times before it no longer gives up enough character. After the third filling it is called a refill, and many distilleries use exactly those to let the style of the spirit come forward.

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In the shadow of Ben Nevis at Fort William, where the highest mountain in Scotland looms over the distillery, sits some of the most understated character in whisky. No smoke, no noise, just malt, clay and time, caught in a pair of old sherry casks.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2014/2023 Signatory Vintage 8 years Un-Chillfiltered Collection is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in two 2nd fill Oloroso sherry butts, casks no. 277 and 278, and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The Un-Chillfiltered Collection is the Signatory range where everything is released unfiltered and uncoloured, so the whole character of the cask stays in the glass. The whisky was distilled on 8 December 2014 and bottled in January 2023 after eight years in wood.

The two refill butts give a more restrained sherry influence than a first fill cask would, but enough to draw out dried fruit, nuts and a lightly spiced warmth. The Ben Nevis spirit is rustic and powerful and built for this kind of maturation, where the weight of the malt meets the sweetness of the cask without either taking charge.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dried fruit, hazelnut and an earthy malt note. Behind it sit a hint of wet clay and orange.

Palate

Rustic and powerful with raisin, nut and spiced warmth. The malt takes up more room than the cask, and that is the whole point of the range.

Finish

Long and dry with nut, spice and an earthy undertone.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2014/2023 Signatory Vintage 8 år Un-Chillfiltered Collection
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 8 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Two 2nd fill Oloroso sherry butts, casks no. 277 and 278
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 8 December 2014
Bottled: January 2023
Edition: Un-Chillfiltered Collection

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Rustic · Nutty · Spiced · Dry

Did you know?

Chill filtration spread in the 1960s because supermarkets complained about cloudy whisky on the shelves. The process removes the fatty acids that cause haze at low temperatures, but it takes a share of the texture with it.

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Càrn Mòr is the name of a mountain in the north-west Highlands, 829 metres above sea level. The series takes its name from it, and the principle is simple: once a release is gone, it does not come back. No refill, no second batch.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2015/2022 Càrn Mòr Strictly Limited 7 years is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in a sherry butt and bottled at 47.5 %.

Càrn Mòr Strictly Limited is a range from Morrison Scotch Whisky Distillers where every release is bottled at a fixed 47.5 % and consists of either a single batch or a single cask. The series covers distilleries from every region of Scotland, and each release is made only once.

This bottling was distilled in 2015 and drawn in 2022 after seven years in a sherry butt. The outturn was 1,840 bottles, which is high for a single butt and points to a single batch rather than one cask.

Tasting notes

Nose

Sweet maple syrup, toasted cereal and a note of smoked bacon. Dried fruit from the cask sits behind it.

Palate

American pancakes with smoked bacon, wrapped in sweet maple syrup. The sweetness and the salty edge pull in opposite directions and meet in the middle.

Finish

Medium and warm with syrup, cereal and a last salty note.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2015/2022 Càrn Mòr Strictly Limited 7 år
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Morrison Scotch Whisky Distillers
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 7 years
ABV: 47,5 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Sherry butt
Distilled: 2015
Bottled: 2022
Number of bottles: 1.840
Edition: Strictly Limited
EAN no.: 5060109229073

Flavour profile

Sweet · Malty · Salty · Spiced · Full bodied

Did you know?

Morrison Scotch Whisky Distillers today owns warehousing in Speyside and runs its own cask programmes, buying new make spirit and maturing it themselves. That is a different model from the classic bottlers who buy fully matured casks.

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The Original Collection is the Cadenhead way of keeping quiet. No cask stories on the front, no series names with swords and mountains, just distillery, vintage and strength. The rest has to stand up in the glass.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 2012/2025 Cadenhead's 13 years Original Collection is a Single Highland Malt Whisky matured in bourbon hogsheads and Oloroso hogsheads and bottled at 46 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

The Original Collection is the standing range of the house, where the whisky is bottled at 46 % rather than at cask strength so it is ready to drink straight away. The series still uses neither colouring nor chill filtration, and the cask types are not hidden.

The two cask types pull in different directions. The bourbon wood gives the brightness and the sweet core, while Oloroso lays the darker, nuttier layers on top. Thirteen years is enough for the muscle of the Ben Nevis spirit to remain intact underneath the cask influence.

Tasting notes

Nose

Biscotti and clootie dumpling, the Scottish steamed pudding full of dried fruit. Apricot marmalade and a sneeze of ginger on top.

Palate

Walnut whip and golden syrup, soft and sweet, with spiced cardamom buns adding warmth and bite.

Finish

Hazelnut and cocoa slide into blackcurrant, fading out on a dark, slightly bitter note.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 2012/2025 Cadenhead's 13 år Original Collection
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Bottler: Cadenhead's
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
Age: 13 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon hogsheads and Oloroso hogsheads
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 2012
Bottled: 2025
Edition: Original Collection

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Nutty · Spiced · Fruity · Full bodied

Investment potential

Medium. Cadenhead bottlings are made in limited parcels and not repeated, and the house has a steady following among collectors. Ben Nevis is also a distillery where independent releases are in demand, since official bottlings are few.

Did you know?

Cadenhead moved from Aberdeen to Campbeltown in the 1970s, when J & A Mitchell, the owners of Springbank, bought the firm at auction. The stocks came along, and the house has bottled from the same site as the distillery ever since.

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Coire Leis is the name of the north-east corrie on Ben Nevis, the side climbers use in winter when snow has closed the rest of the mountain. The whisky is named after it, and it is considerably softer than the terrain.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis Coire Leis is a Single Highland Malt Whisky without an age statement, bottled from carefully selected casks at 46 %.

The bottling carries the subtitle Expertly Selected Casks and has no age statement, because it is assembled from casks of different ages. That gives the distillery a freer hand to hit a particular profile rather than follow the youngest cask in the mix.

The profile sits close to the ten year old from the distillery but softer and a shade sweeter. It comes in a cardboard box and belongs to the part of the range meant to be drunk rather than kept.

Tasting notes

Nose

Cream toffee and vanilla sweetness with a mild breath of wood and barley.

Palate

Ripe pear and apricot, followed by malt and sweetness. Softer than you expect from Ben Nevis, without the weight disappearing entirely.

Finish

Soft and creamy, with the cask clearly noticeable at the end.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis Coire Leis Expertly Selected Casks
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Whisky
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Edition: Coire Leis
EAN no.: 5026673000982

Flavour profile

Soft · Sweet · Fruity · Creamy · Malty

Did you know?

Coire Leis is also the name of the route rescue teams use when coming down from the summit of Ben Nevis in bad weather. Two large stone cairns mark the entrance, put there precisely to keep people away from the cliffs.

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Blue Label arrived in 1999 and quickly picked up a nickname among the distillery staff: bottle of the month, the one that came with the pay slip. It is rarely a bad recommendation when the people who make the whisky take it home themselves.

The expert's description

Dew of Ben Nevis Blue Label is a Blended Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 40 %.

Dew of Ben Nevis is the blend range of the distillery, with Blue Label sitting as the lightest and sweetest expression. It differs from Special Reserve and Supreme Selection by aiming at accessibility rather than weight, and it was introduced in 1999.

The blend combines malt whisky from Ben Nevis with grain whisky, and the distillery in Fort William handles both production and composition. It is not common for a single distillery to blend and bottle its own blend under its own name as well.

Tasting notes

Nose

Light and sweet with vanilla, pale cereal and a touch of honey.

Palate

Soft and simple with caramel and malt. The sweetness dominates and there are no sharp edges along the way.

Finish

Short and clean with a last malty warmth.

Specifications

Name: Dew of Ben Nevis Blue Label
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
Edition: Blue Label
EAN no.: 5026673000302

Flavour profile

Light · Sweet · Soft · Malty · Fresh

Did you know?

Ben Nevis is one of the few Scottish distilleries that distils, matures, blends and bottles at the same address. Most send their casks on to central bottling plants in the Lowlands.

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Five centilitres is enough for two proper sips and an opinion. That is the whole idea behind a miniature: you find out whether the whisky is for you without a full bottle standing there afterwards as a reminder that it was not.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis 10 years Miniature is a Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky bottled at 46 % in a 5 centilitre bottle.

The contents are the same as the standing ten year old from the distillery, its best known release and one of the purest expressions of the Ben Nevis style. The Fort William spirit is heavy and slightly waxy, and the 46 % keeps the texture intact even in a bottling this small.

The miniature is made for tastings and for those who want to try the distillery before buying a full bottle. It is also one of the few formats where you can line up five different distilleries side by side without emptying the shelf.

Tasting notes

Nose

Honey, citrus and cream toffee with a floral note on top.

Palate

Spiced at the start, then honeyed sweetness and an oily middle. Fuller than the five centilitres suggest.

Finish

Long and powerful with dark chocolate and spice.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis 10 år Miniature
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 46 %
Size: 5 CL

Flavour profile

Full bodied · Honeyed · Spiced · Waxy · Fruity

Did you know?

Five centilitre miniatures were originally made as sample bottles for travelling salesmen who needed to show a range without hauling full bottles around. Today they have become a collecting field with clubs and auctions of their own.

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A blend with twelve years in cask is rare enough on its own. Finding it in five centilitre format is rarer still, since miniatures are usually made from the entry expressions in a range, not from the ones carrying an age statement.

The expert's description

Dew of Ben Nevis De Luxe 12 years Miniature is a Blended Scotch Whisky bottled at 40 % in a 5 centilitre bottle.

De Luxe is the age stated expression in the blend range of the distillery. Twelve years in cask give it more weight and a clearer malt core than Blue Label and Special Reserve, and the malt component comes from Ben Nevis in Fort William.

Ben Nevis is one of the few Scottish distilleries that distils, blends and bottles at the same address. That makes the Dew range an unusually direct link between a single distillery and a blend, where most blends draw malt from many different houses.

Tasting notes

Nose

Malt, honey and dried apple with a light note of oak.

Palate

Round and malty with caramel and a hint of nut. The twelve years read as depth rather than as edge.

Finish

Medium, dry and warm with malt at the end.

Specifications

Name: Dew of Ben Nevis De Luxe 12 år Miniature
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
ABV: 40 %
Size: 5 CL
Edition: De Luxe
EAN no.: 5026673000074

Flavour profile

Malty · Honeyed · Soft · Nutty · Dry

Did you know?

Dew of Ben Nevis was launched as far back as the 1800s and was for a period far better known than the single malt from the distillery. The name refers to the dew on the mountain at whose foot the distillery sits.

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Special Reserve is the one people in Fort William actually drink. Not the bottle anyone photographs, but the one behind the hotel bar that gets poured without ceremony when someone comes in out of the rain.

The expert's description

Dew of Ben Nevis Special Reserve Miniature is a Blended Scotch Whisky bottled at 40 % in a 5 centilitre bottle.

Special Reserve sits between Blue Label and De Luxe in the blend range of the distillery. It carries more body and malt character than Blue Label but no age statement, and it is meant as the broad everyday expression of the house rather than as a gift bottle.

The malt component comes from Ben Nevis in Fort William, where both blending and bottling take place at the distillery. The miniature makes it possible to meet the range without committing to a full bottle.

Tasting notes

Nose

Cereal, vanilla and a touch of dried apple. The malt sits just under the surface.

Palate

Medium bodied with caramel, malt and a lightly spiced edge. More body than you expect from a blend in this size.

Finish

Short to medium, dry and malty.

Specifications

Name: Dew of Ben Nevis Special Reserve Miniature
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Blended Scotch Whisky
ABV: 40 %
Size: 5 CL
Edition: Special Reserve
EAN no.: 5026673000265

Flavour profile

Malty · Soft · Cereal · Lightly spiced · Dry

Did you know?

The Ben Nevis distillery fell silent several times in the 1980s and was at one point close to closing for good. The Nikka purchase in 1989 secured operations and got the plant running again.

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Most people connect peat smoke with Islay and salt water. Here it comes from inland, from bogs a long way from the sea, so the smoke turns drier and earthier than the medicinal version from the west coast.

The expert's description

Ben Nevis Traditional Peated Malt is a Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky without an age statement, bottled at 46 %.

The distillery in Fort William produces both peated and unpeated spirit, and the peated part is only made in limited periods. This bottling is the standing expression of that style, combining the smoke with the weight and sweetness of the Ben Nevis spirit.

The smoke is clear but not dominant. It sits as a layer beneath the caramel and the spice rather than taking over the glass, which makes the bottling a different experience from the heavily peated whiskies of Islay.

Tasting notes

Nose

Delicate smoke making room for cream caramel and gingerbread. There is a light floral touch and honey notes as well, balancing the smoky character.

Palate

Mild smoke that quickly gives way to cream caramel and spiced gingerbread. Fruity shades of pear juice mix with traces of liquorice and earthy undertones.

Finish

Long and smooth with lightly creamy and smoky notes that linger on the tongue.

Specifications

Name: Ben Nevis Traditional Peated Malt
Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region/Country: Highland, Scotland
Type: Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46 %
Size: 70 CL
Edition: Traditional Peated Malt
EAN no.: 5026673000616

Flavour profile

Smoky · Creamy · Spiced · Fruity · Earthy

Did you know?

Ben Nevis ran peated production as early as the 1990s, long before smoky whisky from the mainland became common. Much of that early peated output disappeared into blends and never surfaced under the distillery own name.

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BenRiach ran for two years after opening in 1898 and then stood silent for sixty-five more. The floor maltings sat untouched the whole way through, and when the distillery finally started again in 1965 the plant was much as it had been built.

The expert's description

BenRiach 12 years Heart Of Speyside is a Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in oak casks and bottled at 40 %.

Heart Of Speyside was the entry range of the distillery during the years under Billy Walker, who took over BenRiach in 2004 with a consortium and made the house a name in its own right after decades as a supplier to blends. The range was phased out when Brown-Forman bought the distillery in 2016 and reshaped the portfolio.

BenRiach sits near Elgin in Speyside and is one of very few Scottish distilleries to have kept its floor maltings. The house works with three different spirits, unpeated, peated and triple distilled, which is unusual for a single site.

Tasting notes

Nose

Flower honey, ripe pear and a touch of vanilla. Behind it sit pale oak and cereal.

Palate

Soft and malty with honey, apple and a lightly spiced edge. Forty per cent keeps it approachable the whole way.

Finish

Medium, dry and malty with a last breath of oak.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach 12 år Heart Of Speyside
Distillery: BenRiach
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 12 years
ABV: 40 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
Edition: Heart Of Speyside
EAN no.: 5060088790076

Flavour profile

Soft · Honeyed · Fruity · Malty · Lightly spiced

Investment potential

Medium. Heart Of Speyside was phased out after the 2016 change of ownership and is no longer made. Bottlings from the Billy Walker period have drawn increasing collector attention, since that is when BenRiach became a brand in its own right.

Did you know?

BenRiach was closed from 1900 to 1965, but the floor maltings kept running for part of that time to supply malt to neighbouring Longmorn. That is why the plant still exists today.

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Twenty-one years in a sherry butt and still almost sixty per cent in the bottle. That only happens when the cask was filled high and the warehouse ran cool, and it says something about how little escaped through the wood along the way.

The expert's description

BenRiach 2000/2021 Signatory Vintage 21 years Cask Strength Collection is a Single Speyside Malt Whisky matured in a sherry butt, cask no. 6, and bottled at 59.2 % cask strength without chill filtration and without added colour.

The whisky went into cask on 24 May 2000 and was drawn on 13 August 2021. The cask yielded 685 bottles, which fits a butt of that size, and no water was added. The 59.2 % is the natural strength of the cask after twenty-one years.

The Cask Strength Collection is the Signatory range for single casks bottled exactly as they come from the warehouse. The series is used for casks the house judges able to carry full strength, and the malted core of BenRiach has the body required.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dark fruit, walnut and orange peel with a deep sherry note. Behind it sit cocoa and old leather.

Palate

Very powerful and dense with raisin, fig and spiced oak. The strength bites, but the fruit holds its ground and settles as a layer on top.

Finish

Very long and warm with dark chocolate, nut and a dry, spiced close.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach 2000/2021 Signatory Vintage 21 år Cask Strength Collection
Distillery: BenRiach
Bottler: Signatory Vintage
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Whisky
Age: 21 years
ABV: 59,2 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Sherry butt, cask no. 6
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: 24 May 2000
Bottled: 13 August 2021
Number of bottles: 685
Edition: Cask Strength Collection

Flavour profile

Sherry matured · Cask strength · Full bodied · Spiced · Nutty

Investment potential

High. Twenty-one year old BenRiach from a single sherry cask at cask strength is a rare combination, and spirit predating the 2016 Brown-Forman takeover grows harder to find in independent bottlings.

Did you know?

A sherry butt filled in 2000 would normally have dropped to around 50 per cent after twenty-one years. That this one still sits at 59.2 points to a cool, damp warehouse where water rather than alcohol evaporates fastest.

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Three hundred and seventy bottles for the whole world. That is what a refill hogshead gives when it is emptied, and it is also the entire reason the Old Particular series exists. Douglas Laing does not marry casks here, they let them stand alone.

The expert's description

BenRiach 2008/2018 Old Particular 10 years is a Single Speyside Malt Whisky matured in a refill hogshead, cask no. DL12939, and bottled at 48.4 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

Old Particular is the Douglas Laing range for single casks, where each bottling carries its own cask number and its own outturn. This cask was filled in December 2008 and emptied in December 2018, exactly ten years later, and gave 370 bottles.

A refill hogshead gives up its influence slowly, and that is a deliberate choice with a ten year old whisky. The cask is not meant to take over but to let the malty, lightly honeyed core of BenRiach stand out clearly, and the bottling strength of 48.4 % keeps the texture intact.

Tasting notes

Nose

Pale cereal, honey and green apple with a note of vanilla from the cask.

Palate

Clean and malty with honeyed sweetness, citrus peel and a light peppery edge. The cask stays in the background the whole way.

Finish

Medium and dry with malt, oak and a last touch of warmth.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach 2008/2018 Old Particular 10 år
Distillery: BenRiach
Bottler: Douglas Laing
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 48,4 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Refill hogshead, cask no. DL12939
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Distilled: December 2008
Bottled: December 2018
Number of bottles: 370
Edition: Old Particular

Flavour profile

Malty · Honeyed · Fresh · Dry · Lightly spiced

Investment potential

Medium. A single cask of 370 bottles cannot be recreated, and Old Particular has a steady following among collectors. BenRiach predating the 2016 change of ownership is also spirit that grows harder to find in independent bottlings.

Did you know?

Douglas Laing puts DL in front of every cask number so the cask can be traced back through the house archive. The system makes it possible to establish exactly when a cask was bought and what has happened to it since.

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Nineteen casks for the entire world. Rachel Barrie walked the warehouse and picked them one by one for the Cask Edition series, and the Danish importer got a share of two. This is one of them, cask number 8562.

The expert's description

BenRiach 2009 Cask Edition 11 years is a Single Speyside Malt Whisky matured in an Oloroso sherry puncheon, cask no. 8562, and bottled at 58.9 % cask strength.

The Cask Edition Collection is the distillery own range of single casks, selected by Master Blender Rachel Barrie. Nineteen casks were chosen for the whole world and distributed to markets individually rather than as a single release.

The whisky went into cask on 8 May 2009 and was drawn after eleven years. A puncheon holds around 500 litres, the size of a butt, but it is shorter and wider, and the 693 bottles fit a cask of that type. The sherry is clear, but the 58.9 per cent gives it enough edge not to turn heavy.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dark fruit, candied orange and walnut with a deep sherry note. Behind it sit spiced oak and a little cocoa.

Palate

Powerful and dense with raisin, dark chocolate and warm spice. The cask strength gives it bite, and the sherry fills out without turning sticky.

Finish

Long and warm with dried fruit, nut and a dry close of oak.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach 2009 Cask Edition 11 år
Distillery: BenRiach
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Whisky
Age: 11 years
ABV: 58,9 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oloroso sherry puncheon, cask no. 8562
Distilled: 8 May 2009
Bottled: 2020
Number of bottles: 693
Edition: Cask Edition Collection

Flavour profile

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

Investment potential

High. Nineteen casks for the whole world is a very small number for an official release, and single casks from the distillery itself are rarer than the independent ones. Selections made by Rachel Barrie also have a steady audience among collectors.

Did you know?

Rachel Barrie is one of the few female master blenders in Scotch whisky and looks after BenRiach, GlenDronach and Glenglassaugh at the same time. She started as a scientist at the Scotch Whisky Research Institute in 1991.

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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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One hundred and ninety-nine bottles. That is what came out of the one cask Dràm Mòr bought, and it is enough to fill a single shelf in a single shop. Scottish micro bottlers work at that scale, and it is their entire reason for existing.

The expert's description

BenRiach Dràm Mòr 10 years PX Finish is a Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky finished in a 1st fill PX sherry hogshead and bottled at 55.5 % without chill filtration and without added colour.

Dràm Mòr is a small Scottish bottling house run by Viktorija and Kenny Macdonald from Glasgow. They buy single casks, often give them a finishing period in selected wood and bottle them at cask strength without adjustments. This cask gave 199 bottles.

The finish in first fill PX is short enough that the fruity character of BenRiach still fills the glass. It is a different approach from long sherry maturation, and the result reads cleaner and fruitier than a PX cask normally suggests.

Tasting notes

Nose

Like a Sunday at Christmas with an assortment of chocolate treats, where the marshmallows carry a small hint of dark liquorice.

Palate

Fruitier and cleaner than you would expect from a BenRiach with a PX finish. The sweetness is there, but it sits beneath the fruit rather than on top of it.

Finish

Remarkable, with impressive length and character that hangs on and extends the pleasure.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach Dràm Mòr 10 år PX Finish
Distillery: BenRiach
Bottler: Dràm Mòr
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 10 years
ABV: 55,5 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Finished in a 1st fill PX sherry hogshead
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Number of bottles: 199
Edition: Strictly Limited

Flavour profile

Fruity · Chocolate · Cask strength · Sherry matured · Long

Investment potential

High. One hundred and ninety-nine bottles is a very small outturn even by single cask standards, and Dràm Mòr releases rarely stay on the shelf. The cask cannot be recreated.

Did you know?

Dràm Mòr means big dram in Gaelic. The house was started in 2020 by a married couple, she from Lithuania and he from Scotland, and they still bottle everything themselves in small parcels.

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No age on the label, no cask story, no named series. Just a distillery, a region and forty per cent. There is a certain honesty in a bottle that does not try to say more than it can back up.

The expert's description

BenRiach Heart of Speyside is a Single Speyside Malt Whisky without an age statement, matured in oak casks and bottled at 40 %.

This is the younger of the two Heart of Speyside bottlings, the other carrying twelve years on the label. Without an age statement the distillery had a freer hand to assemble casks by taste rather than by number, which gave a profile held steady across the life of the range.

The range belonged to the period under Billy Walker, who bought BenRiach in 2004 and turned the distillery into a brand in its own right after decades of mainly supplying malt to blends. Heart of Speyside was phased out after the 2016 change of ownership.

Tasting notes

Nose

Pale cereal, honey and apple with a suggestion of vanilla. Simple and easy to read.

Palate

Soft and malty with honey and a touch of pear. No edges, and that is the intention.

Finish

Short to medium, dry and clean.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach Heart of Speyside
Distillery: BenRiach
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Whisky
ABV: 40 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Oak casks
Edition: Heart of Speyside

Flavour profile

Light · Soft · Honeyed · Malty · Fresh

Investment potential

Medium. The range was discontinued along with the rest of the Billy Walker portfolio, and bottlings from that period grow gradually harder to find. The version without an age statement is less sought after than the twelve year old.

Did you know?

For decades BenRiach sent virtually all of its production into blends and released almost no single malt under its own name before 2004. That is why the distillery is far less known than its neighbours in the Speyside, despite existing since 1898.

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The barley is spread across a stone floor, turned by shovel over several days and dried above the kiln. That is the slow way to malt, and it survives at only a handful of Scottish distilleries. Here the entire bottle is made from it.

The expert's description

BenRiach Malting Season Second Edition 2013/2022 is a Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky matured in 1st fill bourbon casks and bottled at 48.9 %.

Malting Season is the distillery range made purely from barley malted on the house floor maltings. BenRiach is one of very few Scottish distilleries to have kept the facility, and it is only used in limited periods each year, which sets a natural ceiling on how much whisky the range can yield.

The second edition was distilled in 2013 and bottled in 2022 after nine years in first fill bourbon wood. The fresh American oak gives vanilla and pale sugar, and because the malt was floor malted the cereal character stands out more clearly than in the other bottlings from the distillery.

Tasting notes

Nose

Fresh barley, vanilla and pale sugar with a note of hay and baked bread.

Palate

Malty and creamy with honey, coconut and a touch of citrus. The cereal character takes up more room than in the other expressions from the distillery.

Finish

Long and dry with malt, vanilla and a lightly spiced close.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach Malting Season Second Edition 2013/2022
Distillery: BenRiach
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Scotch Whisky
Age: 9 years
ABV: 48,9 %
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: 1st fill bourbon casks
Distilled: 2013
Bottled: 2022
Edition: Malting Season Second Edition
EAN no.: 5060716143229

Flavour profile

Malty · Vanilla · Creamy · Honeyed · Dry

Investment potential

High. The range is limited by how much barley the distillery can malt on its own floors, and each edition is made only once. Floor malted whiskies are a small category in Scotch whisky and hold a steady audience among collectors.

Did you know?

The floor maltings at BenRiach stood idle from 1999 and were brought back into use in 2013. Malting Season Second Edition is made from barley from that very restart, which makes the 2013 vintage the starting point of the range.

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The first edition of anything is the one people remember. Malting Season started here, with barley from the distillery own floor maltings and a decision to make whisky the slow way again, long after the rest of the trade had stopped.

The expert's description

BenRiach Malting Season First Edition is a Single Speyside Malt Whisky without an age statement, bottled at 48.7 %.

The range is made purely from barley malted on the distillery own floor maltings in Elgin. The facility is one of very few left in Scotland and can only handle a limited quantity of barley at a time, which puts a hard ceiling on how much whisky the range can ever yield.

The first edition marks the start of the range and is also the one everything after it is measured against. The bottling strength of 48.7 % was chosen to keep the texture intact, and the cereal character of the floor malted barley reads clearly through the cask.

Tasting notes

Nose

Baked bread, honey and pale cereal with a note of dried apple.

Palate

Creamy and malty with vanilla, flower honey and a lightly nutty middle. The cereal takes up clear room without turning dry.

Finish

Long and warm with malt, oak and a last touch of honeyed sweetness.

Specifications

Name: BenRiach Malting Season First Edition
Distillery: BenRiach
Region/Country: Speyside, Scotland
Type: Single Speyside Malt Whisky
ABV: 48,7 %
Size: 70 CL
Edition: Malting Season First Edition
EAN no.: 5060716140068

Flavour profile

Malty · Honeyed · Creamy · Nutty · Dry

Investment potential

High. The first edition in a series traditionally holds the strongest position on the collector market, and Malting Season is at the same time limited by how much barley the distillery can malt on its own floors. The combination makes it hard to replace.

Did you know?

Only around a handful of Scottish distilleries still run a working floor maltings, and most of them cover only a small share of their own needs. The rest buy malt from large commercial maltings that supply the whole trade.

See our full range of BenRiach Whisky

Listen to our podcast: