My take on Benromach 10 yo

So far I've mostly engaged with standard bottlings of very well known and widely available whiskies. Now it's time to look beyond these highly visible malts, and try out one that is a bit more obscure. My choice for that is the Benromach 10 year old, which originates in the Speyside of Scotland, but is said to have more of a Highland character (a quick look on a map will tell you that the famous Speyside is actually part of the Highlands, but in whisky language the Speyside is a region of its own due to the sheer number of distilleries located there, and the distinctly different, more fruity character of most Speyside malts compared to the rest of the Highlands). On the container, the founding date of Benromach is given as 1898, but the distillery had a very interrupted history. A few years ago then, the then dormant Benromach distillery was actually bought by the independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail, renovated, and restarted. Although the modern core range of Benromach now seems to be very well available around the world, it still is one of the smallest Scottish distilleries in terms of production volume, which in my book qualifies for a non-mainstream malt.

I was actually made aware of this malt by Ralfy, a very entertaining online commentator for Scotch whisky, who made this bottle his Whisky of the Year 2014. To be honest, I never even heard the name Benromach before I watched his review. But what he told about the stuff made me curious, and so I bought a bottle. Benromach is in fact very forthcoming and transparent in what they do. Therefore, we know that the mixture of casks used for maturation is at an 80/20 ratio (ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks), and that the malt they use for their mash bill is slightly peated. Furthermore, Ralfy attests a very well made spirit and quality maturation, so all in all it sounds very intriguing for my taste. Due to the mixture of casks, my first thought was to compare this to the Highland Park 12 yo, but it turned out to be quite different.

Enough said, let's get down to business:

Nose: The first thing I smell is green apples - so classic Speyside after all? But with a bit more time, I find the sweet sherry influence, and more savory notes like smoked ham. All in all, however, a rather soft nose.

Taste: Intense arrival with the sherry immediately there. The taste then develops towards more smoke, slightly salty, bringing out delicious savory notes of the smoked ham that was already there on the nose.

Finish: Considering the explosion of taste on the first sip, the finish does not last very long. Bitterness from the oak comes through, but very restrained. A very pleasant savory taste lingers a bit and slowly fades out.

Bottom line: Whisky lovers often talk about how different flavors are weaved together, and this whisky showed me what that is all about. It's hard to describe, but here the fruity spirit, the smoke from the malted barley, the sherry flavors from the casks, and the saltiness from the maturation all work together, instead of simply standing side by side. I'm really enjoying this whisky, and am truely grateful to Ralfy for pointing it out.
  + widely available and affordable, great complexity in flavor, savory malt
  - a bit weak on the nose, slightly disappointing finish

Slàinte mhath!