Ben Nevis 20 year old 1997 Exclusive Malts, cask 38

The second half of this series starts with one of my own bottles. The tasting sample was pulled from below the bottle's halfway point, so yes I already know how this story's going to end. With smiles, damn it! Whoops, I mean SPOILER ALERT.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Creative Whisky Company
Range: The Exclusive Malts
Age: 20 years old (24 Jan 1997 to 2017)
Maturation: refill sherry hogshead
Cask #: 38
Outturn: 242 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 51.9%
(from my bottle)

NEAT
BIG sherry on the nose. Can't imagine what this hoggie's first fill whisky was like. There are smoked almonds, Heath Bars, walnuts, brine, orange oil and hints of anise and mint. There's also a musty old cask note that peeks out from time to time. The palate is salty and earthy with plenty of dark chocolate, but that's balanced with lemons, golden raisins, guava juice and spicy cigars. It finishes with tart limes, peach skins, earth and baking spices.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Not much change (which is good!) on the nose. It's slightly fruitier and maltier with mellower sherry. The palate has become earthier with forest floor notes. Dunnage floor, too? A bright orange note floats above. It finishes with soil, smoke and oranges.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
After a string of decent but unexciting bottles of my own, it was such a pleasure to finally open an excellent whisky. As mentioned in the notes, this is one of those refill casks that reads like a vibrant first fill, yet there are no plain pruney notes nor black raisins. The dark and light characteristics are precisely balanced on the palate, while the nose shines at every moment. In addition to all those words, I'd just like to add that this whisky is very tasty. The end. 😊

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - around $125 back in 2017
Rating - 90

Ben Nevis 20 year old 1996 Single Cask Nation, cask 2011

Easy summary of the first seven Ben Nevee: No home runs, maybe a pair of doubles and two singles. Only one flop from the five bourbon casks, but none of the four matched the complexity and loveliness of the 13 year old hoggie that sold me on Ben Nevis eight years ago.

It's time to switch to the 20+ year old sherry cask Ben Nevises (including some 1996s), and I'm really hoping to find some winners among them. I've given Single Cask Nation a bit of grief during this series so I'm hoping this refill puncheon gets a little punchy in my glass. Yeah, I'm proud of that one.

Don't look too hard for the man in the reflection
because these tastings are pants-optional.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Single Cask Nation
Age: 20 years old (Nov 1996 to Jan 2017)
Maturation: refill Oloroso puncheon
Cask #: 2011
Outturn: 321 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 55.6%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
Party nose! Milk chocolate, caramel sauce, milky coffee, Old Spice and orange slice candy. There's also some mild peat and a hint of mango juice. It all gets mustier and fruitier with time. The palate arrives from a different angle. Bitter chocolate, soil, broken stones and dried leaves. Hints of honey and oranges in the background. The whisky gets heavier, smokier and saltier with time in the glass. The finish is very earthy and leafy with a spicy zing.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or 1¼ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose leans more towards cigars and toasted oak spices, then almond extract, lemon zest and a pinch of moss. The palate is a blast of dark chocolate, heavy smoke and sweet citrus. It finishes smoky and earthy with a hint of sweetness.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This one beat the five preceding bourbon cask Ben Nevii fair and square. The fruity bits keep it from becoming monolithic, but it's still a dark, hefty thing and LOADED with character. It smells great and tastes great and I wish I had more right now. Should I have just done 16 sherry cask bottlings? Or I am getting too hyped about the second half of this series?

Availability - Sold out (USA)
Pricing - maybe $200ish?
Rating - 89

Ben Nevis 23 year old 1996 Single Cask Nation, cask 1839

After the Valinch & Mallet experience I decided to move some of the Ben Nevises around so that I could finish up all the bourbon cask BNs right here. All nine Nevises after this will be from sherry casks, which is what all four of you who've been following this series have been waiting for anyway.

This 23 year old hoggie from the Single Cask Nation gents was distilled in 1996, an allegedly fabulous vintage for this distillery. ...... And now I've just deleted my two-paragraph hot take on whisky "vintages". I'm unsold on the magical vintage theory (because science), but I've also written about it a half dozen times already. Instead, I will write about something totally unique to Diving for Pearls: Ben Nevis.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Single Cask Nation
Age: 23 years old (Nov 1996 to Nov 2019)
Maturation: second-fill bourbon hogshead
Cask #: 1839
Outturn: 209 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 50.4%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
The nose is mossy with a few drops of tropical fruit punch, followed by small notes of buttery American chardonnay and old newspapers. It gets butterier, and picks up notes of dried thyme and orange with time. A subsequent pour shows more flowers and dried apricots. The palate has a salty mineral core with flowers and nectarines around the outside. A strong tanginess and pepper oil joins the salt. Tiny notes of oranges and malt in the background. The subsequent pour is maltier with a good bitterness. Its warm finish is simply salt and citrus.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ½ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose becomes much fruitier, candied like a Jolly Rancher bag, with notes of moss, roses and tomato leaf in the background. Nectarines, oranges, minerals and barley make up the palate, with a balance of sweetness and pepper at its center. It finishes sweeter now, though it's still tangy and salty. Maybe a bit of lychee in there?

WORDS WORDS WORDS
Though the cask lost at least 41% of its original contents over 23 years, it thankfully didn't seek revenge on the whisky and its drinkers. By that I mean, the whisky isn't oaky. It does feel lean and simple when neat, but then loosens up with just a little bit of water. I wasn't crazy about this Ben Nevis during its first pour as it offered nothing one can't get from many younger, cheaper whiskies from other distilleries. But the second pour was better, bolder and brighter. Though for this price??? Next.

Availability - Several retailers in the US of A
Pricing - $220-$260
Rating - 85

Ben Nevis 19 year old 1999 Valinch & Mallet, cask 18-1901

Here's today's whisky:

Here's last Friday's whisky:

Side by side:

Look at today's whisky, on the left, swallowing light. I went in on the bottle split because I thought it was a sherry cask. It's not. It's a bourbon hogshead.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Valinch & Mallet
Range: Hidden Casks Collection
Age: 19 years (1999-2018)
Maturation: bourbon hogshead
Cask number: 18-1901
Outturn: 278 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 52.8%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
It noses of lumber, bark, caramel, pine needles, cocoa, black peppercorns, caramel, brine, mint and caramel. The punishingly sweet palate rings of sweet vermouth and tawny port. Orange oil, eucalyptus and acres of bitter oak. It finishes with cloying sugar syrup and bitter oak.

Um, water?

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ¾ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
The nose is of a dustier bourbon now. Lots of caramel, butterscotch, barrel char and vanilla custard. There's more vanilla and barrel char on the palate, with some bubblegum, sweet vermouth and intensely drying tannins. It finishes with a sugary swirl of vanilla and cherry juice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
As a Ben Nevis this is turrible. Had someone done this to a Springbank or Clynelish or Lagavulin there would be pitchforks and tears and gnashing of teeth throughout whiskydom. The whisky makes one wonder if "Hidden Casks" refers to the act of finding the thing in the back of the warehouse way way way too late.

BUT. As a bourbon it is of interest. It's essentially a combination of two genres of American whiskey. Part One: those wine cask finished thingies from Angel's Envy and Joseph Magnus. Part Two: Crafty-Craft Craft Craft Whiskey. And, you know what, it makes a decent old fashioned cocktail. I mean that was the whole purpose of this release, right?

Availability - A few bottles may still be available here and there in the USA and Europe
Pricing - $150-$200
Rating - 73 (but only if you pretend you're drinking bourbon)

Ben Nevis 18 year old 2001 Old Particular for K&L Wine Merchants

25% done with the series and what have I learned so far? That Ben Nevis can be weird and it can be overrun by aggressive sherry casks? Nah, I think many of us knew that already. I appreciate that each of the first four whiskies was its own creature, demonstrating that Ben Nevis has the potential to be a chameleon malt. But I'm not sure how I actually feel about that, especially if the quality rarely matches the quirk. Whisky number 5 on this trip is a refill hoggie, so perhaps it'll lean a little closer to Monday's Blackadder.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Douglas Laing
Range: Old Particular
Age: 18 years (2001-2019)
Maturation: refill hogshead
Cask number: DL13264
Exclusive to: K&L Wine Merchants
Alcohol by Volume: 52.8%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
The nose begins naked and raw, with barley and heat and sand. Then, gradually, it opens up. Milk Duds, McIntosh apples, plums, flowers, the first dose of BN industrial funk and some quirky savory spices. Malt, hard toffee and plums in the palate, followed by IPA-ish grapefruits (or grapefruit-ish IPAs), mint leaves, fresh ginger and a hint of that funk. A real citrus bomb in the finish, with grapefruits, oranges, lemons, ginger and mint leaf.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, < 1 tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Ah, the nose has become much more medicinal while also adding in lemon peel and more maltiness. The palate also gains a medicinal note and citrus zests. Fewer sweets, more minerals. It finishes citric, mineral and malty.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
I was hoping to experience The Funk (sans sherry cask!) and The Fruit in the same Ben Nevis at some point during this series, and here it is in the form of an 18yo refill hoggie. Though more complex when neat, the whisky sharpens and focuses nicely once it's diluted. For those folks wondering if Ben Nevis could be a casual drinker, this whisky answers in the affirmative. Crisp stuff. I like it.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - $100
Rating - 88

Ben Nevis 16 year old 1998 Cadenhead Authentic Collection

Ben Nevis + Cadenhead = a reliable next step. I didn't purposely set this series up to have several bourbon casks in a row, so it's just dumb luck that I have a chance to drink a few Ben Nevii that are (theoretically) closer to the spirit. Monday's Blackadder was very good. I'm looking forward to this single bourbon barrel of my favorite Western Highlands single malt.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Cadenhead
Range: Authentic Collection
Age: 16 years old (1998 to Nov 2015)
Maturation: bourbon barrel
Outturn: 228 bottles
Alcohol by Volume: 51.2%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT

The nose begins with a good balance of metal, soil, orange peels and peach skins. Then some ocean notes, fresh cilantro, jalapeños and snuffed candle. At first the palate shows minerals, limes, kiwis and pound cake. But then it makes a beeline for rum. Specifically, Foursquare. And I can't get it out of my head. It finishes with Foursquare, limes, grass and black pepper.

DILUTED TO ~46%abv, or ⅔ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

Oh my gourd, now there's Foursquare in the nose. Once I can swim through the rum I find baked apples and toffee pudding. The palate is very desserty, with spice cake and raspberry sorbet. It finishes with berries and brown sugar.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Well, shoot. While there is in fact a 1998 Cadenhead Ben Nevis that was finished in rum casks, this is not the one. I've seen the bottle this came from. Anyway, the neat nose delights again, and the neat palate hits all the right spots for the first two sips. The Foursquare switcheroo is a little odd but not a dealbreaker. My bigger issue is that the whisky gets much too liqueur-like once diluted. So keep this whisky neat!

Availability - Probably sold out
Pricing - €90, I think
Rating - 84 (neat only)

Ben Nevis 15 year old 2003 Blackadder Raw Cask, cask 383

After reviewing two young sherry cask-led Ben Nevii, I'm trying out a run of five consecutive bourbon cask BNs, gradually increasing in age, beginning with this 15 year old hoggie from Blackadder. In my previous review of a Raw Cask single malt I said I liked the idea of this range more than the results, but I wouldn't mind a nude Nevis for the sake of this series.

Distillery: Ben Nevis
Region: Highlands (Western)
Independent Bottler: Blackadder
Range: Raw Cask
Age: 15 years (15 December 2003 to January 2019)
Maturation: Hogshead
Cask number: 383
Outturn: 279
Alcohol by Volume: 55.5%
(from a bottle split)

NEAT
Ah, this is the stuff. The surprisingly complex nose holds stones, ocean, soil, apple pie and vanilla fudge, as well as hints of strawberry jam and apricots. But its earthiness reads the loudest. With time it develops a combo of lychee and medicinal notes that somehow work. The palate is earthy, fruity and sweet, with nectarines and honey. There's also an OBE-style metal-meets-dunnage note to keep the sugars in check, but it gradually gives in as the whisky gets very sweet with time. It finishes with honey, lemon juice, salt and a hint of smoke.

DILTUED TO ~46%abv, or 1¼ tsp of water per 30mL whisky
Ocean and earth make up most of the nose with hints of anise and cut grass. The neat palate's sweetness has been washed away, leaving behind minerals, very tart limes and old newspapers. It finishes earth and smoky, with a squeeze of lime juice.

WORDS WORDS WORDS
This is one of the better Raw Casks I've had the pleasure of trying. It is in fact not too raw. The nose is excellent, mixing a sturdy earthiness with smaller fruit notes. For me, the palate works better when it's diluted, as the sweetness dims and some heavier, old fashioned notes appear. To be totally vague, I must say this one feels the most "Ben Nevis" of the three whiskies so far. And now my hopes have risen for one stellar bourbon cask to appear in this series...

Availability - Sold out or almost so, was sold in Europe and the US
Pricing - probably north of $150, because Blackadder
Rating - 87