
August 1, 2016

Little duets, today Ben Nevis

Always something happening in any Ben Nevis malt whisky! Which reminds me that I should try a newer batch of the official 10 as soon as possible, but sadly, that won’t happen today…

Ben Nevis 19 yo 1996/2016 (50.5%, The Whisky Agency, refill sherry, 360 bottles)

This series is called ‘good vibes’, I don’t think Peter Tosh would have disapproved. Colour: straw. Nose: oh perfect! A mineral fruitiness, with peaches and hot limestone in the heart of summer (yes I speak with experience), then aspirin tablets, lamp oil, cantaloupes, a little seal blubber, and a lot of grapefruits. Wonderful style, not seen anywhere else. With water: wonderful farmy development. Hay, farmyard, grains… And a trace of suntan lotion. Mouth (neat): exceptional! Tell me about a hidden gem… Stunning peachy fruits, tangerines, pink bananas, cranberries… This fruitiness is totally glorious. With water: indeed, indeed. It’s not that it’s a surprise, especially given the bottlers, but still, it is a surprise. Finish: medium, fresh, fruity. Blood oranges. Comments: I knew it ‘could’ be excellent, but this excellent?! In the same cluster as Clynelish and Pulteney (when Pulteney’s not killed by wood). SGP:651 - 90 points.

Bwaah, I had thought this 1996 would be a gentle challenger, but it’s rather a winner. A tougher job for the older bro… Let’s find one that’s not too sherried… Perhaps this?...

Ben Nevis 26 yo 1973/1999 (50.8%, OB, casks #355-356, 400 bottles)

Colour: gold. Nose: yeah yeah yeah. Linseed oil and orange peel, plasticine and fresh almonds, the same peaches as in the 1996, and some very nice whiffs of high-brand moisturizer. Guerlain or something, I’m no expert. With water: strange, the hand cream comes to the front, which makes the whole a notch too soapy/creamy for me. Mouth (neat): mineral, waxy, oily, citrusy, almondy. Yes we’ll keep this short and sweet. With water: not sure, it kind of falls apart, with the good stuff on one side (lemons) and a bizarre chemical waxiness on the other side (Play-doh, plastic). A shame, this started very well. Finish: medium, still oddly sappy, but the background stuff is excellent, lemons, zests… Comments: not too sure about this one. In theory, many Ben Nevisses from the late 1960s and early 1970s were superb whiskies, but in practice, this one kind of failed. Now, it’s still very good whisky, just not as legendary as others. And it’s not impossible that it got a death seat after the 1996. SGP:461 - 81 points.

Check the index of all Ben Nevis I've tasted so far

July 2016

Favourite recent bottling:
Benrinnes 30 yo 1984/2015 (56.6%, Silver Seal, cask #2268, 480 bottles) - WF 92

Favourite older bottling:
Tamdhu 23 yo 1950/1973 (83° proof, OB, Highland Distillers) - WF 94

Favourite bang for your buck bottling:
Caol Ila 8 yo 2007/2016 (46%, Signatory Vintage for The Whisky Exchange, bourbon barrel, cask #315325, 320 bottles) - WF 90

Favourite malternative:
Uitvlugt 18 yo 1997/2016 (45%, Compagnie des Indes, Guyana, cask #MGA4, 637 bottles) - WF 91