Oh BenRiach! You make great whisky! And now you have something new! Well that sums up my feelings when I heard about the Albariza. BenRiach have done a pretty good job of explaining what this expression is so I’ll just copy and paste:

“The BenRiach 18 Years Old Albariza is part of the new heavily peated range. Originally matured in American oak casks,the whisky is then finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks.

The name ‘Albariza’ is derived from the typical white soil used for growing grapes in the production of sherry in the Andalucia region of Southern Spain.

Bottled at 46%, at natural colour and non chill filtered, ‘Albariza’ is available on a strictly limited basis.”

Nice and easy.

Distillery: Benriach

Age: 18 Years Old

Cask: Aged in American Oak then finished in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks

ABV: 46%

RRP: £71.95 at MoM

---

TheMadVatter

Nose

A nice toasty fire in the winter time with warm smoke filling the outdoor air. Strong smokiness. Red medical iodine. A bit of menthol or some sort of cooling flavour. Some fruitiness like a summer fruit bowl with lots of berries.

Taste

Medicinal like ginseng root. Some very sweet fruit syrup. Almost like cough syrup for kids. The cough syrup-ness really kicks in at the end. The peat hovers on the high end throughout. Actually not as overpowering as I would have thought from the nose.

Finish

A smouldering fire and embers in the air. Quite powerful and smoky. Still a bit of the menthol coolness and lingering sweetness. A bit of that strange synthetic aftertaste you get from Robitussin.

Rating

7

Afterthoughts

There is a lot going on in this dram. I felt like it was a bit too busy in a chaotic way. I can definitely see this appealing to others though and I think there was just something missing for me. I would still happily drink this but it’s a more perplexing dram. Something I would mull over after a disquieted evening while sitting by the fire.

AliceInWhiskyland

Nose

Earthy notes, dates with maple syrup. Bitters.

Taste

Burnt toffee. Bitter coffee.

Finish

Strongly brewed coffee and lingering spices.

Rating

7

Afterthoughts

Interesting dram. Quite different and new.

Image at top from the BenRiach website.