On the hunt for Ben Nevis, Part Drei


July 18, 2024

On the hunt for Ben Nevis, Part Drei

Where are these? (Ben Nevis)

We still have a lot left to enjoy, a good twenty or so. And of course, we're not complaining. Let's try to focus a bit on the younger ones, even if it means encountering some wine, as is the current fashion...

Ben Nevis 8 yo 2014/2023 (47%, Signatory Vintage for Whic, Spirit of the Forest, Port pipe, cask #235, 811 bottles)

Colour: straw. This was well-matured Port wood. Nose: one of the most mustardy yet, quite robust with plenty of watercress (garden cress) and sprouted seeds, just a hint of lavender essence (perhaps from the Port), followed by increasingly prominent leather, cracked pepper, and nutmeg. There’s a touch of smoked paprika and a hint of blackcurrant mustard. Overall, it’s far more ‘Ben Nevis’ than ‘Port’. Mouth: now we get to the cooked red fruits, and thus the Port, complemented by mustard and pepper. Then we move towards very dark chocolate, raspberry ganache, or crème de cassis, but the spices remain at the forefront, especially the pepper. Finish: long, with ripe strawberries and black pepper. Comments: a very fine result, I imagine someone watched over this Port pipe like a hawk.
SGP:662 - 86 points.

Ben Nevis 10 yo 2012/2023 (59.3%, OB, for LMDW New Vibrations, American wine cask, cask #2137, 268 bottles)

It’s amusing to see an American wine cask, given Ben Nevis’s history of installing concrete washbacks inspired by Californian winemakers. Colour: light gold. Could it have been American white wine? Nose: the wood and fruity varnish are very pronounced, but not bothersome, after all, the cask comes from the land of bourbon. Plenty of coconut milk, hints of green tea, and perhaps even touches of pineapple. It’s curious but delightful. With water: more on pancakes covered in redcurrant jelly. Mouth (neat): very powerful, very spicy, and very fruity. Cranberry juice with oak chips, clootie dumplings, very ‘red’ muesli, red beets… it’s fun. With water: the distillate shines through, with pepper, leather, mustard, nutmeg, saffron, soot, and ashes. Finish: similarly long-lasting. The redcurrants return right at the end. Comments: doubly new-world, this little official Ben Nevis. I quite like it, it’s well-made, no complaints, quite the opposite.
SGP:662 - 85 points.

Ben Nevis 7 yo 2015/2023 (57.1%, Milroy’s, Soho Selection, refill bourbon Hogshead, 353 bottles)

The 12-year-old from Milroy’s was very pleasant last time. Colour: very pale white wine. Nose: a magnificent, very young Ben Nevis, entirely natural and unadulterated. We’re left alone with the distillate (ha), and it’s brimming with wet chalk, soot, peat, mustard, seaweed, lemon, and green apples. Amen. With water: brake dust, Formica, linoleum, and litres of engine oil. Say Veedol. Mouth (neat): my goodness, it’s delicious. Smoked pepper, peat, lemon, green pepper, horseradish, mild chili… perfect texture, oily yet fresh and refined. With water: who had the brilliant idea of pouring mezcal and gentian into the cask while everyone was looking away? Finish: long, with bitter almonds, soot, cinders, pepper, and lemon liqueur. Comments: there’s peat, but it’s much more integrated than in the very ‘punk’ 4-year-old 2019 ‘heavily peated’ we had last time.
SGP:664 - 87 points.

Ben Nevis 9 yo 2014/2023 (59.7%, James Eadie, first fill oloroso butt finish, cask #367508, 656 bottles)

These guys are wizards; one must be wary. Indeed. Colour: gold. Nose: oh blimey, boot polish! And hand cream, lanolin, preserved lemon, faux leather, marjoram, lemongrass… With water: almond milk with a hint of seawater and metal polish. It’s perfect. Mouth (neat): that sensation of lemon-scented boot polish and caraway, with added walnut wine, then, increasingly, green Chartreuse and fir bud. With water: lemon zest and soot. And that slightly rough edge from the oloroso and its green walnut side. Finish: long, perfect, on similar notes. Orange liqueur in the aftertaste. Comments: I must remember this one for our Bang for your Buck ranking this month.
SGP:562 - 89 points.

Ben Nevis 10 yo 2013/2023 (57.4%, Dràm Mor, 1st fill palo cortado finish, cask #136, 180 bottles)

They are also rather adept at finishings; in my opinion, they are among the few small companies to have truly elevated the practice. Colour: gold. Nose: here we have fudge, slightly smoked, nougat, Nutella, praline, toasted sesame, and butterscotch… I had forgotten that palo cortado could do this; we’re not dealing with the salty, tarry mustard of a big fino, or indeed a typical Ben Nevis. With water: more wet earth and low-tide beach. Mouth (neat): it combines well, it’s much more vigorous this time, with pencil shavings, green walnuts, green lemon juice (not lime), and indeed mustard. With water: even better. Lemons, soot, fino. Finish: same. Seaweed mustard in the aftertaste. Seaweed mustard is very good. Only the aftertaste is very slightly dusty. Comments: it must be said that BN is the perfect partner for sherries aged under flor.
SGP:662 - 87 points.

Here’s a little taste of what’s yet to come...

Ben Nevis 27 yo 1996/2023 (48.8%, Abyss Whisky Bar, Hong Kong, hogshead, cask #877, 215 bottles)

These splendid folks are situated in the Charterhouse Hotel in Hong Kong. As for the 1996 vintage at Ben Nevis, does it even need yet another introduction? Plus, no sherry in sight, it seems… Colour: straw. Nose: one of the hallmarks of these years at Ben Nevis is the tropical fruit, particularly mango, which weaves itself beautifully between leather, anything from the sea, and ashes. And that’s precisely what we have here, just spot on. There are a few hints of small bananas, rose petals (just a couple), viognier, Sauternes… But all of that is distillate-driven. It also reminds me a bit of the later years’ Brora, like the ones we tasted on-site a fortnight ago. Grand Cru whisky. Mouth: oh, how delightful! The subtle ‘dirty’ side of Ben Nevis, which we adore, is very much present, with a touch of watercress, mustard seeds, soot, banana skin, lime zest… Finish: long and intensely vibrant, you’d never guess this BN is nearing thirty years. Charcoal, soot, cigar ashes, wax, then grated zest and those usual tiny mustard notes. A more saline and mineral aftertaste. Comments: the entirety of this parcel of casks is sublime. It’s far more the Olympus than the abyss, if I may say so… (lousy at best, S.)
SGP:652 - 91 points.

I don't know how we're going to manage with all these other very glorious 'BNs' that are about to appear on these pages in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...

Check the index of all Ben Nevis we've tasted so far