Bottled at 46% ABV, Benriach The Smoky Ten Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky is crafted from unpeated and peated spirit and matured for at least 10 years in bourbon barrels, Jamaican rum casks and toasted virgin oak.
For someone looking to see what a smoky Single Malt is all about, this would be a wonderful place to start. There was nothing off-putting about this whisky, however, there also wasn’t anything overly impressive. I would be more than happy to have Benriach The Smoky Ten in my glass, but it wouldn’t be my first selection.
On the palate there's stone fruit, spices, vanilla, new leather, smoldering peat, and dark chocolate. The finish offers oak, black pepper, salt, and earthy peat.
BenRiach The Smoky Ten is a good example of how Highland peat can be used in Speyside whiskies. The peat is actually more punchy than I had in my mind but it carries the BenRiach sweetness I like with the spicy notes possibly coming from virgin oak.
Very fresh up front, with melon notes. This dries out as the smoke picks up then leads into crisp apples, before becoming baking spice on the back palate.
Like the Original 10, this is a great intro to Scotch, but on the peated side of things as it’s less powerful than something like and Ardbeg or Laphroaig and keeps a strong sense of its fruity malty core.
