A long-overdue review for this BenRiach 1977, which was bottled for Asta Morris. A sample I received a long time ago (February even!) from the San Francisco Whisky Club. He actually gave me two samples, both to taste blind, but I will highlight the other in a different review.
So, a while ago I did an interview with Asta Morris for Malt, a Belgian independent bottler owned and founded by Bert Bruyneel. I was then very impressed by his bottles that I tasted, but I was also triggered by his earlier BenRiach releases. Unfortunately, I had never had the chance to taste it. What I couldn’t know then was that I had a blind sample of one of these releases in my possession all the time! So when I heard what it was after I tasted the sample, I couldn’t help but smile. Funny how things sometimes work out.
Anyway, there are 5 BenRiachs selected by Asta Morris and this one was distilled in 1977 and bottled in 2011. It has matured in a refill bourbon cask and has a strength of 45.7% ABV. There were only 175 bottles released.
BenRiach 1977 tasting notes:
Nose: Woaah, this is very nice! Tropical fruits, such as papaya and mango. A hint of marzipan. Then a honey note in the background, which is followed by apricots and vanilla. Ending with sweet oranges and ginger.
Taste: Grapefruit here. Then it goes towards passionfruit and peach. A hint of bananas. Vanilla. Honey and a little bit of marzipan. A touch of ginger and oak. It is somewhat spicy.
Finish: A long finish. Somewhat salty and with a bitter edge of grapefruit and oak spices.
Wow, some BenRiach hey! Fantastic stuff. The nose is the most interesting part for me. But boy, do I love the tropical fruits in this dram. Fruit bomb galore!
Many thanks to San Francisco Whisky Club for this wonderful dram and the lovely photo!
