The Whisky of the Year tasting is the only official global blind whisky tasting undertaken by members of the public and, for the first time this year, the six shortlisted whiskies were nominated by global customers of The Whisky Exchange, with more than 1,200 putting forward their favourites. Without prejudice to the section Liability below, the Service may be temporarily unavailable during maintenance, updates, etc. We shall make reasonable efforts to inform you of any unavailability due to maintenance or updates. Nose: Zesty, fruity, deep orange, blood orange, red grapefruit, heather honey, malty cereal barley, a touch of smoke, milky vanilla, ginger, milk chocolate, sherry trifle, a little floral too. Finish: Medium-long. Tannic and a bit nutty, with fading slight bitterness. Surprisingly dry and timid, considering the depth on the palate.

This 15 yo bridges the gap nicely between the standard 10 yo and its big badass sister that is the 100 proof/cask strength. It has the boldness and richness from the 10 yo cask strength, yet due to the lower ABV it’s accessible enough for those who might find the 57% ABV beast to be a bit much. Benromach and owners Gordon & Macphail used to have, “It’s the wood that makes the whisky” as their baseline until a few years ago and and while, from today’s point of view, that might seem a tad simplistic, this 2016 expression is living proof of the company putting that theory into practice. If we decide not to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms, such decision shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. The Service has been prepared by us solely for information purposes to Members and the Service is based on information we consider reliable and we obtain the contents of the Service from a number of different third party sources (including Contributions), but we do not endorse, support, represent, warrant or guarantee the completeness, truthfulness, accuracy, or reliability of the Services and any information therein. Benromach’s entry-level 10 year-old bottling is aged in a combination of 80% ex-bourbon and 20% ex-sherry casks (all first-fill), and then married for 1 additional year in first-fill European oak oloroso sherry casks. The 15 year, however, continues that final aging for an additional 5 years (for a total of 6 years) in oloroso. This extra aging gives the whisky a mahogany color and a deep, resinous sherry character. The sherry barrels are sourced from Bodegas Williams & Humbert in Jerez. Bourbon barrels come from Heaven Hill and Jim Beam. For the 10-year and 15-year, Benromach uses malt peated to a delicate 12 – 14 ppm using Highland peat. This is to emulate the style of “traditional” Speyside whiskies, which were routinely malted using peat fires before the advent of new heating technologies (and new tastes in lighter-style whiskies for blending). The final whisky is bottled at 43% ABV with no added color.We may, but are not under any obligation, to release new functionalities and tools or other features for the Service every now and then. Any new functionalities, tools and features shall be part of and governed by the Terms from the moment they are launched and/or available. Further, we reserve the right to modify, change, discontinue the Service, add or remove features, update the Service, change its appearance, temporarily and permanently, at any time, in whole or any part thereof. Distilled at Benromach distillery in Speyside and matured for a minimum of 10 years in ex-Bourbon and ex-Sherry casks, then finished in ex-Oloroso Sherry for 5 years for a total 15 years minimum maturation. A wonderfully complex dram with zesty fruits, chocolate and sherry influences, the added maturation adds a little more oak wood influence and spice over the 10 year old and 100° Proof expressions. A great price for a characterful 15 Year Old Speyside whisky. Score 88/100

Pour yourself a dram of Benromach 15 Years Old. Lift it to the light and note the especially goldenamber colour, thanks to the long maturation in sherry and bourbon casks. Now swill it around your glass and take a few little inhalations tosavourtheAROMA WITHOUT WATER…there’s a lot going on… beautifully balanced sherry aromas with vanilla pod, zesty orange and spicy ginger complemented bydelicatechamomile and menthol notes. Now sip your dram, roll the whisky around your mouth and enjoy theTASTE WITHOUT WATER…there’sluscious, rich fruit cake with stewed plum, red apple skin and the sharp edge of kiwi fruit. Next, take in theAROMA WITH WATER…the whisky shifts into another gear with subtlehints of cocoa, nutmeg and cinnamon giving way tosweet honeynotes and hints of bonfire embers. Add a drop or two of water to release the fullTASTE WITH WATER…it’s a very satisfying palate with traces of charred oak complementing sweet tangerine, plum and nectarines… completed by agorgeoustouch of milk chocolate.Tell us what you think. The nose is aromatic. Apples, pears, dates, figs, apricots, and raisins, milk chocolate, and leather are prominent, while a dash of perfume, some earthy notes, and subtle smoke round the whole thing off. The Benromach 10 is dangerously quaffable. A dram offers much to explore if you take the time to delve into it. At 10 years of age and 43% ABV, this has more depth than some single casks at 20 years old or other, more renowned, standard bottlings of the same age. Weighing in the price, the score should amount to an 8/10.Prices are listed below and the range is widely distributed. Preferably, we should support our local dealers and have a wee chat with them while we’re there as they might have further bottles to explore. This cookie is set by Rubicon Project to control synchronization of user identification and exchange of user data between various ad services. No partnership, joint venture, agency, or employment relationship is created as a result of your use of the Service. We may sell, license, transfer, assign or in any other way dispose of the Service (including Members) to any third party without any notification to you, e.g. (but without limitation) in connection with any reorganization, restructuring, merger or sale, or other transfer of assets. As they state on their label, Benromach is made for “genuine character”. So, expect some rough edges, as Benromach is not one of those generic and all-too-many smooth and gentle crowd-pleasers.