Scotch Review #78: The Old Malt Cask Benrinnes 19 Year (1995)

Distillery: Benrinnes

Region: Highland

ABV: 50%

Age: 19 Year, Distilled in 1995

Cask No.: 10577

Price: $8.50 for a 3 oz sample

Color: 0.4, Jonquil/Ripe Corn. Natural Color & Not Chill-Filtered

---

Nose: (According to the wife) Incredibly fresh and bright. There’s a lot of fresh lemons as well as freshly ginger in here. It is a tad strong the ethanol smell though.

Palate: Exactly like how the nose suggests: lemon and ginger. The lemon comes in two forms. The first is this slightly sweet but still tart note that reminds me a lot of lemon drops. The second is with ginger in a note that reminds me a lot of lemon ginger tea. There’s a hint of malt as well.

Finish: Medium in length and much to my surprise, there are no lemons here. The main, and basically only note, is that of golden raisins.

Conclusion: If lemon drops came in an alcoholic form, I think this would be a pretty decent representation of it. It’s fresh and bright in the nose. The palate is full of fresh, tart lemons with a hint of sweetness and ginger. I’m wondering how good this would be fighting a cold given how much lemon seems to be in it (it probably isn’t very effective). I’m reminded a lot of the Yamazaki 12 with this dram, though the Yamazaki is a bit more fleshed out and developed. Overall, a pretty good dram. Would I buy a bottle? Not at the going rate of €80/$90. I definitely would if it was closer to $50/60.

Scotch whisky review #78, Highland review #21, Whisky Network Review #102

Final Score: 78.

---

Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.