You probably know by now that I have a soft spot for the Ben Nevis 10-year-old. I have reviewed it for Malt and it is really one of the better entry level whiskies you can find, I think. So when I saw that a cask strength version had been released, I didn’t have to think twice about buying it.

Different from the regular 10-year-old is that it is a limited edition and we know what kind of casks are used here: first-fill bourbon, sherry and wine casks. In addition, you pay double the price for this cask strength version. It will cost you around €110,-. Which is a bit steep for a 10-year-old cask strength, in my opinion.

This Ben Nevis has bottled at a hefty 62.4% ABV.

Ben Nevis 10 c.s. tasting notes:

Nose: Cranberries, and cherries. It’s a bit malty. Then oranges and a nice layer of honey. Nutty too, almonds. Some spices here, like nutmeg and liquorice. With water: the spices are more in the background and there is more of the oranges. The sour cranberry note is gone. A hint of vanilla now too.

Taste: A sour, citric note. Then cranberries again. A note of cherries. And honey too. It becomes very sweet now, which is probably due to that wine cask. Dark chocolate. And quite some spices here; peppery, and that liquorice again. With water: It becomes nutty, almonds. It’s sweeter and the peppery note is a little to the background. Creamier too, like sweet milk. and a bit sugary. Vanilla? A menthol note too.

Finish: the finish is a bit short. With a lot of spices. Almonds. and it’s peppery. Liquorice here too.

It’s a nice Ben Nevis, but not for the faint-hearted. 😉 As it’s quite rugged. And in my opinion, it really got better with a drop of water. Will I choose it over the regular 10-year-old? I don’t think so. It’s a good single malt but so it the regular 10, and I think this cask strength edition is a little too expensive for what you get.