Benriach The Twelve and Benriach The Smoky Twelve

Benriach was originally built in 1898 by John Duff (who also owned the nearby Longmorn Distillery). It didn’t end up running for very long before it was closed down in 1900, one of the casualties in the wake of the bankruptcy of Pattison’s Whisky, which had been a large whisky purchaser. Benriach only began to produce spirit again in 1965 when it was reopened by Glenlivet Distillers Ltd. The distillery changed hands a number of times since then, with the whisky it produced being used almost exclusively for blends for other whisky brands.

Perhaps the most notable development for the distillery in recent years was its purchase in 2004 by two South African businessmen – Geoff Bell and Wayne Kieswetter – in conjunction with Billy Walker, a scotch whisky expert (who later became the master distiller at GlenAllachie). This was because the new owners decided to have the distillery sell its very own range of single malts. According to Bell and Kieswetter, when they bought the distillery it actually had an abundance of whisky-filled barrels in stock. These dated all the way back from 1966 up to 2002 – some of which was said to be very good – and this enabled them to relaunch Benriach as a producer of its very own range of single malts without too much trouble.

Benriach Distillery was sold again in 2016, this time to Brown-Forman Corporation, which also owns Jack Daniel’s.

Benriach is a fairly versatile distillery, known to produce three distinctive styles of whisky: unpeated, peated, and triple distilled. They also pride themselves on their use of a wide variety of cask types from around the world, which they play around with in order to try to create some interesting flavour profiles.

Both Benriach’s “The Twelve” and “The Smoky Twelve” were launched in 2020 as part of their new core range of single malts. They are both “triple cask matured,” meaning that they’re each made up of whisky that has aged in three different types of casks, which is then married together before bottling. The Twelve is aged in a combination of bourbon, sherry, and port casks, while the Smoky Twelve is aged in a combination of bourbon, sherry, and marsala wine casks.

I haven’t personally managed to find a triple distilled expression from Benriach, but I thought it would be quite nice to compare an unpeated with a peated whisky from the very same distillery, to see whether or not something of the distillery’s distinctive character and flavour profile is detectable in both… even when there’s something potentially distracting, like peat, threatening to overpower the flavours of the whisky. That these whiskies are also both 12-year-olds, non-chill filtered, naturally coloured and bottled at 46% ABV contributed to the impression I formed that this comparison could be an interesting one. Having said that, the variation in casks used complicated any pretence of a straightforward comparison!

Benriach The Twelve – Review

Colour: Rich amber.

On the nose: Upfront the nose is quite rich. Lots of dried fruits, particularly raisins. Juicy oranges. There’s a slightly sour note that fades quickly. Lashings of vanilla, and some honey. A very subtle hint of star anise. There is also a background note of aromatic cherry, or cherry flavoured tobacco, as well as some dark chocolate.

In the mouth: A pleasing mix of toffee and fruitcake. More vanilla. Fairly light and creamy texture, with a touch of peppery spice and dark chocolate bitterness. Perhaps a lingering note of papaya.

Score: 5/10

Benriach The Smoky Twelve – Review

Colour: Deep amber.

On the nose: An initial smoky aroma, reminiscent of the smouldering embers from a wood fire. A suggestion of smoked ham. Plenty of sweet and spicy notes, some ripe red apples, pear. Vanilla, and a hint of chocolate mousse.

In the mouth: A nice balance of smoky and sweet flavours. The wood smoke isn’t too overpowering. Spiced fruitcake. Creamy vanilla and toffee. There’s also a slightly earthy note lurking in the background that reminds me of a well-worn leather jacket. Quite smooth in texture with a prickly finish, and a lingering dark chocolate note.

Score: 6/10

Conclusions:

I like both these whiskies, but I especially enjoyed tasting The Smoky Twelve. I have a fondness for peaty whiskies that have a sweetness to them too, and this whisky definitely fit that bill. I found The Smoky Twelve to be decently peaty, but it’s certainly not the peatiest dram out there, so any truly hardened peat fans might be slightly disappointed with the level of smoke that this whisky delivers.

These two expressions from Benriach are perhaps moderately complex – they both have enough going on to make them worth exploring, and I enjoyed the variety of rich fruity notes in both. They’re both reasonably affordable too, which is a huge added bonus in my opinion. In my neck of the woods The Twelve retails for just over $30 (a little less than a bottle of Glenmorangie 10). As a result of this, it regularly features in my sipping collection. The Smoky Twelve is a little more expensive at around $42 (roughly the same price as a bottle of Glenfiddich 12), but still very reasonable.