BenRiach Curiositas 10 Year

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!

Lágy, visszafogott illat: préselt alma édeskés leve keveredik némi füsttel, a háttérben itt-ott tölgyfahordóval. Szájban sem robban, vanília, némi fűszer és gabona, de az illat valahogy többet ígért. A füst is mintha eltűnt volna. Talán még éretlen kissé? A lecsengés közepesen hosszú, az a 46% azért érződik. Korrekt whisky, de a neve emlékezetesebb lesz, mint maga az ital. De legalább nem színezett! Szárazpróba: halovány tölgyfa. *** Soft, restrained nose: the sweet juice of pressed apples mixes with some smoke, with oak barrels here and there in the background. It doesn’t explode in the mouth either, vanilla, some spice and grain, but the nose somehow promised more. The smoke seems to be vanished. Maybe still a tad bit immature? The finish is moderately long and the 46% is duely felt. Correct whiskey if nothing more but its name will be more memorable than the drink itself. But at least not colored! Dry test: pale hints of oak.

Not bad similar to ballechin 10 standard. That same campfire note but also with some typical highland fruit (apple) subtly there in the background. Better than old ballantruan which isn’t as well made.

Smoked apple juice with salt, delicious. Better than average viscosity, easy drinker. Nice close- out special.

Peat dominates the nose, with a hint of caramel. Taste starts off rather sweet and transitions to heavy peat as it moves back through the mouth. Smokiness intensifies as the flavor lingers, with a hint of salted char in the back of the throat. Finish is smooth and peaty, with a little bit of fire in the belly.

Peated and slightly sweet on the nose which matches the taste. Additional taste of caramel and a hint of salt round out the peated, warm finish.