One month each year, the
folks at The BenRiach spread barley
on its malting floor, watch it carefully while turning it by hand, and pick the
“perfect” time to move it to the kiln to dry and stop the germination process.
The BenRiach is a Speyside
distillery and is known for doing things in its own way. Dr. Rachel Barrie is one of the most respected master blenders in
the business. And, in 2021, she’s taken
a single malt Scotch in an entirely new direction with Malting Season.
“Passed from distiller to distiller throughout the generations, the floor malting process keeps a traditional part of the whisky-making process alive with BenRiach being one of only seven distilleries in Scotland to continue the practice of floor malting.
Distilling spirit from barley malted here on site is a true labour of love and something we are passionate about keeping alive here at BenRiach as an ode to our creative whisky-making heritage.” – Stewart Buchanan, The BenRiach global brand ambassador
It begins with the aforementioned
once-a-year malting. A concerto strain of barley, the most common, was used,
and in this case, 100% of it came from the malting floor. The distillation took
place on November 2, 2012. That single malt new make then aged in two types of
casks: virgin American oak and former Bourbon
barrels and rested for nine years. The yield was 6672 bottles, and you can
expect to pay about $149.99 for a 750ml package.
Before I get to the review,
I’d like to thank The BenRiach for providing me a sample of Malting Season in
exchange for a no-strings-attached, honest review. I’ll #DrinkCurious and get to it.
Appearance: Served neat in my Glencairn glass, Malting
Season presented as the color of bright gold. It left a medium-thick rim that
led to husky, slow legs that fell back to the pool of liquid sunshine.
Nose: Honey was obvious. Peach, vanilla, Fuji
apple, malt, and raw almond aromas lay beneath. As I pulled the air through my
lips, the Fuji apple gained strength.
Palate: The mouthfeel offered a medium-weight body
and was silky. Fuji apple, Bartlett pear, and honey started things off. As the
whisky moved to the middle, toasted almond and vanilla took over. Then, on the
back was a blend of oak, white peppercorn, and milk chocolate.
Finish: The oak became dry, the white pepper
remained, and then became sweet with honey and apple, then featured a redux of
the dry oak. This was one of those big finishes that lasted several minutes.
Bottle, Bar, or Bust: Malting Season is a stunningly good Scotch.
The balanced palate and finish offered a substantial presence with bold
flavors. There’s no astringent. There’s no peat. The proof is just right
without being unnecessarily diluted. Would I spend $149.99 on this? I believe
so, but I’d also like to see it come down about $20.00 or so in price.
Regardless, this earned every bit of my Bottle
rating. Grab one. This is the first edition of what’s sure to become an
amazing annual release. Cheers!
My Simple, Easy to
Understand Rating System
- Bottle = Buy It
- Bar = Try It
- Bust = Leave It
Whiskeyfellow encourages
you to enjoy your whiskey as you see fit but begs you do so responsibly.
Comments
Post a Comment
As we should drink in moderation, all comments are subject to it. Cheers!