Tastes

Nose - apricot, sulphur, dry oak, orange, pineapple, apple, honey, strawberry, allspice, butterscotch, vanilla, cashew, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - butterscotch, apricot, fig, apple juice, mint, ginger, honey, chili pepper, light sulphur, orange zest, lemon, brine, pineapple, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with stone fruit, sour apple, and ginger flavors. We’ve added two years and swapped the virgin oak component for port with The Twelve release. I wasn’t a fan of The Original Ten. Let’s see how this one compares. The nose hits me with the same blast of sulphur found on its counterpart. That’s unfortunate. Otherwise it’s pretty decent. More honeyed stone and red fruits and an oily nuttiness I didn’t find on the other. The palate has the gingery, chili peppery quality that accompanies all the BenRiachs I’ve tried. It’s very fruity and somewhat minty. And the sulphur makes an appearance as well. The mouthfeel is medium thin and the finish is average. There are noticeable differences between The Original Ten and The Twelve, but I don’t like one particularly more than the other. Interestingly, I appear to be the only reviewer listing the sulphur note for these, although someone else mentioned moldy wood, which is in the same ballpark. Regardless, it’s clear I prefer BenRiach’s peated releases based on the few I’ve reviewed. I’ll try something much older from the distillery tomorrow to wrap up this review series.

Nose - apple juice, pear, honey, cereal grain, sulphur, orange zest, apricot, caramel, vanilla, wet grass, allspice, light oak, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - apple juice, honey, ginger, pear, apricot, brine, cereal grain, butterscotch, vanilla, lemon pith, orange zest, grass, mint, cinnamon, mild to moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with honeyed fruit, ginger, and citrus flavors. I’m now venturing into the world of unpeated BenRiach, starting with this new entry level offering, The Original Ten. Interestingly, it’s the only of the new releases bottled at 43%. The rest are at 46%. The nose doesn’t inspire confidence. If I didn’t know better, I would think this was a mid shelf blended malt. It has the same apple juice quality you often find with them. Nice sherried, honeyed fruits appear, but there’s also an undercurrent of meaty, industrial sulphur. It’s not a total dealbreaker, but it’s noticeable and unwelcome. Fortunately, the palate gets things back on track. The sulphuric quality is kept in check with more of the focus on the citrusy, fruity, gingery flavors. The mouthfeel is thin and the finish is underwhelming. This is just barely above average for me. It tastes young, a bit sour, and slightly bitter. At almost $70 a bottle near me, there’s no value to be found here. Next on deck is The Twelve. Hopefully it’s an improvement similar to the one found with The Smoky Twelve.

Nose - sweet peat, honey, pear, apple, smoked meat, vanilla cream, butterscotch, tobacco, nutmeg, rubber, orange, brine, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - sweet peat, orange, pineapple, honey, pear, apple, ginger, mint, chili pepper, butterscotch, drying oak, vanilla, chocolate, clove, brine, smoked meat, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with peat smoke, citrus, and honeyed orchard fruit flavors. The Smoky Twelve is the last in the line of peated BenRiach offerings I’ll be reviewing. This is coming off a rather lackluster showing for the Smoky Ten. The nose is gentler than its younger sibling’s. There’s peat and smoked meat, but it’s less acrid and ashy here. The honey and orchard fruits are more saturating and play a larger role. The palate follows along with a similar gingery, spicy zing found on the Smoky Ten, but all the notes strike a better balance. The mouthfeel is also chewier and the finish is slightly better. While not exceptional, this is definitely better than the Smoky Ten, and probably better than the Curiositas. The aromas and flavors are dialed in really nicely, with the savory, meaty, smoky components harmonizing well with the honeyed, fruity, citrusy ones. The notes are also easier to pick out here, which is usually a good sign for me. Overall, it’s a really nice sipper. On the negative side, there’s some youthful sourness that holds it back from greatness. It’s $6 a bottle more than the Smoky Ten near me, so splurging for this is a no brainer if choosing between the two. Still, it’s $75 a bottle, which I wouldn’t call a screaming deal but you could certainly do worse.

Nose - ashy peat, smoked meat, lemon pith, apple, pear, honey, molasses, white pepper, nutmeg, vanilla, brine, resin, sweet floral notes, caramel, leather, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - smoked meat, fresh peat, ginger, chili pepper, apricot, pear, honey, apple, caramel, brine, vanilla, clove, sour oak, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with ashy peat, citrus, and peppery ginger flavors. My BenRiach series continues with this Smoky Ten release, heir apparent to the discontinued Curiositas offering. I’m hoping they haven’t raised the prices just to deliver a lower quality product. Let’s find out. The nose is very similar to Curiositas’. It’s ashier than its predecessor, and I don’t remember detecting a brininess like I do here. The palate has a more acrid smokiness and a pithier citrus quality. The mouthfeel is thin, borderline watery, and the finish is average. As feared, the Smoky Ten isn’t as good as Curiositas. The nose is about the same, but the palate is noticeably inferior. It’s not bad, but I’m disappointed in the direction this has taken. Safe to say, I won’t be buying a bottle at the $70 price point it has near me. Next up, I’ll be trying the Smoky Twelve. Maybe the extra two years and different cask influences will make a positive difference.

Nose - earthy peat, smoked meat, honey, pear, apple, leather, floral notes, polished oak, vanilla cream, orange, lemon, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - smoked meat, lemon meringue, vanilla, apple, pear, honey, sour oak, clove, ginger, chili pepper, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with meaty peat, lemon, and chili pepper flavors. This is the first of six BenRiach reviews I have planned, covering a few peated and unpeated offerings from the distillery. The nose is peaty smoked meat, somewhere in the the Caol Ila or Balvenie Peat Week range of aromas. Aside from that, there are some nice vanilla, lemon, and orchard fruit balancing the savory notes. The palate is light and smoky. There are strong citrus and pepper components as well. The mouthfeel is a bit thin and the finish is mediocre. As far as I can tell, this is discontinued and effectively replaced by the Smoky Ten from the new core range, which I’ll be reviewing tomorrow. It’s obviously an entry level expression, but it’s a good one. Pricing on this seems to have been all over the place, but at $50 or $60 a bottle, I’d say it was a really solid value. Let’s hope I can say the same for the new Smoky Ten. Many thanks to @jonwilkinson7309 for providing the generous sample!

Nose - cereal grain, apple, sawdust, honey, oat, floral notes, pineapple, mango, guava, orange, lemon pith, dry oak, cinnamon, moderate ethanol burn. Taste - guava, tangerine, salted caramel, vanilla, lemon zest, allspice, ginger, spearmint, pineapple skin, cereal grain, bitter walnut, sour oak, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with citrus zest, tropical fruit, and sour oak flavors. My final Penderyn is a 15 Year single cask aged in an ex-bourbon barrel. The nose is light, fruity, and dry. The tropical fruit notes, which accompany all Penderyns I’ve tasted, are out in full force. There are citrus and baking spices as well, but everything is underpinned by an unfortunate sawdusty graininess. The palate has the tropical fruit, but there’s a strong citrus quality, a bitter nuttiness, and a minty, gingery zing. This is better than average, but the balance is all off here. The tropical fruit notes are nice, but it’s too grainy, sour, and bitter to be a particularly enjoyable dram. The 13 Year Rich Oak single cask was the standout of the four Penderyns for me. My overall impression of the distillery is that there are gems to be found, but some overpriced mediocrity as well. I’m putting it solidly in the try before you buy category. A huge thank you to @pkingmartin for providing all of the Penderyn samples. It was great being able to take a deep dive into Welsh whisky.

Nose - dark chocolate, salted caramel, coffee, raisin, polished oak, candied orange, caramelized banana, tobacco, leather, vanilla cream, earthy mint, guava, mango, lemon, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - butterscotch, pineapple, tangerine, dark chocolate, spearmint, leather, mango, black cherry, vanilla, rich oak, ginger, clove, nutmeg, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium length with dark chocolate, candied fruit, and rich oak flavors. Next up on my Penderyn series is this 13 Year Rich Oak. My first thought is that this is aptly named. It’s dark, rich, and woody. The nose brings its namesake along with some candied fruit, leather, and a tropical quality that reminds of the guava note found on the 10 Year Madeira Finish. The palate has that same richness with some sweet citrus, tropical fruit, and mint. It’s a bit bright, but not unpleasantly so. The finish is middling and the mouthfeel is rather thin, which is unfortunate because it’s a wonderful dram otherwise. Overall this is great whisky. I love those rich, dark, oaky qualities. It’s easily the best of the Penderyn bunch so far. If it were slightly less thin and bright, this would be outstanding. At around $150 a bottle, the value proposition is dubious but not untenable. A big thank you to @pkingmartin for providing the generous sample!

Nose - apricot, cereal grain, plum, cherry, guava, orange, caramel, vanilla, allspice, tomato, light sulphur, grass, powdered sugar, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - apricot, orange pith, plum, sour apple, tannic oak, cereal grain, allspice, light sulphur, bitter herbal notes, caramel, vanilla, lemon, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium short with stone fruit, citrus pith, and tannic oak flavors. Coming off the 12 Year Ruby Cask, I’m hoping the rest of the Penderyns on deck will be more palatable. The nose is very fruity. It’s obviously a heavily finished single malt. There’s some marked graininess alongside citrus and an acidic quality that reminds me of tomato. The palate carries the same fruitiness, but it’s unfortunately bitter and slightly sour. There’s a touch of sulphur as well. The finish is relatively short and drying. This isn’t as violently bitter as the 12 Year Ruby Cask, but it unfortunately has some of the same bitterness and youth. Overall this is a few steps up. It’s good whiskey, but it just barely makes the grade for me. A big thank you to @pkingmartin for the generous sample!

Nose - strawberry, bitter herbal notes, cherry, vanilla cream, wet grass, apple, prepared caramel, sulphur, cereal grain, allspice, moderate to high ethanol burn. Taste - strawberry seed, wet grass, spearmint, bitter herbal notes, cereal grain, caramel, vanilla, green apple, sour oak, lemon pith, moderate to high alcohol bite, finishing medium short with bitter strawberry, sour citrus, and grainy oak flavors. This begins a short series of Penderyn reviews I’ll be posting over the coming days. I’m hoping they’re all uphill from here on out. The nose is fruity, herbaceous, and drying. The port finish is very heavy-handed. Bright strawberry dominates with cherry, vanilla, and a hint of sulphur. The palate is extremely bright and sour. Tannic strawberry seeds, bitter herbal and pithy, grainy citrus flavors abound. This is not good. It’s seriously bright and youthful, and the port finish is way overdone. And I don’t usually say this, but it’s probably bottled at a higher proof than it should be. Many thanks to @pkingmartin for gifting me his bottle. I’m going to play around with various amounts of dilution. Maybe I can get this one dialed in correctly. @pkingmartin had the great idea to share a list of Bottom 10 whiskies of the year. I’m posting this in 2022, but let’s pretend it’s my last of 2021 because I’m going to include it. So without further ado, here are the worst whiskies I reviewed in 2021. For obvious reasons, I’ve removed all flavored and unaged whiskies from the list. 10. The Busker: Triple Cask Triple Smooth 9. Proper Twelve: Irish Whiskey 8. Kilbrin: Irish Whiskey 7. Penderyn: 12 Year Ruby Cask 6. Cutty Sark: Prohibition Edition 5. Grangestone: Rum Finish 4. Shieldaig: The Classic Blended 3. Glen Ness: Single Malt 2. Floki: Icelandic Single Malt 1. Glen Logie: Blended Malt I still have nightmares about that Glen Logie. It’s a singular experience to put it nicely.

Nose - barnyard funk, hay, sawdust, honey, dry rotted leather, barley sugar, cereal grain, vanilla, nutmeg, mild to moderate ethanol burn. Taste - hay, barnyard funk, sawdust, ginger, barley sugar, honey, pear, apple, nutmeg, lemon zest, cereal grain, caramel, vanilla, moderate alcohol bite, finishing medium long with barnyard funk, lemon, and sour orchard fruit flavors. I physically gagged when I first put my nose to the glass, so I can’t say we’re off to a good start. This smells like a farm, or maybe a guinea pig cage that hasn’t been cleaned for months. If you dare to dig deeper, some honey, barley sugar, and marked graininess appear. The palate isn’t quite as horrific, but that barnyard quality is front and center. More grainy barley notes are complemented by orchard fruit, citrus zest, and a bland, cloying sweetness. Adding insult to injury, the finish is long and unrelenting. Wow. Just wow. While not quite a drain pour, this comes very close. It smells like a farm and tastes how I’d imagine a Crown Royal single malt would if it were filtered through sawdust and cow pies. If nothing else, this is certainly unique. Big thanks to @pkingmartin for providing the sample! Happy New Year, everyone!