Hey look another one of these BCS (Benromach Cask Strength, not the college football thing) items! On Monday, the 2007 Batch One proved to be merely very good. Today's batch of 29 sherry and bourbon casks whisked together was the last of the 2009 vintage batches. The sample comes from Mr. Opinions's's own bottle, so I expect nothing but the absolute best here.
Ownership: Gordon & MacPhail
Region: Speyside (Findhorn)
Range: Cask Strength
Age: 10-11 years (2009-2020)
Maturation: first-fill sherry and bourbon casks
Outturn: ???? bottles from 29 casks
Chillfiltered? No
e150a? No
(thank you to My Annoying Opinions for the sample!)
NEAT
The nose shows earthier peat (soil and dirty rocks) and fudgier chocolate than the 2007. Dried apricots and rooibos soon follow. Subtler floral and PX notes appear after 30+ minutes. Good balances of sweet and peat in the palate. Picture pork tenderloin with an apricot sauce. Honey roasted nuts, cinnamon, and toasted oak spices join in later on. It finishes similarly, but with more citrus and less peat.
DILUTED to ~50%abv, between ¾ and 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky
I like it better here! Steak and dried cherries on the nose. Black walnuts and flowers. Milk chocolate and pine. The palate has shifted to dried cherries, ginger, wood smoke, and clove cigarettes. Oh my, a lovely long finish of bonfire and ocean water.
WORDS WORDS WORDS
It was a close race between this batch and the 2007 batch until I diluted them both, then this one pulled ahead, especially with its excellent finish. Its color was lighter than the other batch, and the sherry casks were better integrated. I'm not sure if those two aspects are related, but it seems like they are. A good pickup by Mr. Opinions. I could have certainly used a bottle of this during the early Covid Era.
Availability - Maybe still a few bottles in Europe?
Pricing - $100ish?
Rating - 87
