Revitalizing tradition
Today, Speyside is known for unpeated, fruit-forward whiskies. However, this wasn’t always the case.
Until the 1960s, Speyside’s distilleries used peat to fuel their malt kilns, imbuing their malted barley (and therefore their whiskies) with a hint of smoke. Changing techniques and technology saw this practice all but abandoned in Scotland’s most famous whisky region.
At Benromach Distillery, however, this tradition is central. Since its resurrection in the late 1990s, the distillery has been producing lightly peated single malt whiskies and (re)introducing drinkers to Speyside’s “lost smoke”.
About Benromach
Benromach was established in Forres in 1898. It changed hands numerous times in the early 20th century before being snapped up by Diageo forerunner DCL in 1953.
It was closed in 1983 but would not be out of service for long. Elgin-based independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail bought the distillery and undertook a major renovation, reopening the site in 1998. King Charles III (then the Prince of Wales) was invited to cut the ribbon, and a cask head he signed is still on display in the visitor center.
Gordon & MacPhail’s vision at Benromach was to revive a traditional style of Speyside single malt whisky made with peated malt. While a few other Speyside distilleries make peated expressions (Benriach, Glen Moray) or have peated brands (Tomintoul’s Old Ballantruan, GlenAllachie’s Meikle Tòir), Benromach is the only one with a fully peated core range.
Benromach’s Signature range comprises four whiskies: age-statement releases at 10, 15 and 21 years old, and a cask-strength expression released annually. All are lightly peated (10−12ppm) and matured in a mix of first-fill bourbon and sherry casks. The age-statement single malts are bottled at 43% abv, while the Cask Strength Vintages vary between batches. Recommended sales prices range from £45 ($60) for the 10-year-old to £150 ($200) for the 21-year-old.
The distillery practices longer fermentations (between three and five days), using a combination of distiller’s and brewer’s yeasts for an extra-flavorful spirit, and its bourbon and sherry casks are exclusively first-fill. It still matures its whiskies in dunnage warehouses primarily, with a recent multimillion-pound expansion adding more on-site racked storage.
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Benromach Tastings
Benromach 10 Years Old
Colour: Yellow-gold
Nose: It’s fruity up-front with notes of raisins, ripe orchard fruits, plump raspberries and dark chocolate-coated orange peel alongside cinnamon French toast, burnt muscovado sugar, and hints of espresso and mascarpone, running in tandem with soft peat smoke.
Palate: Buttery caramel, vanilla pods, sweetened iced coffee and cocoa powder join poached pears, orange peel and sherried fruits. There’s also roasted (but not salted) almonds and an undercurrent of earthy smoke.
Finish: Gentle smoke wafts through the finish alongside spiced orange notes.
8/10
Benromach 15 Years Old
Colour: Golden
Nose: Rich fruitcake packed with raisins and freshly zested orange, wrapped in sweet smoke. Dark caramel, verging on molasses, and the mustiness of sourdough bread. With time come baked apple, cinnamon sugar and a tart red fruit note.
Palate: Intensified red fruits, like blackcurrant or plum jam. Floral honey and candied citrus peels. Then toasted teacakes, chocolate-covered coffee beans, hints of clove and black peppercorn, and subtle earthy-sweet smoke.
Finish: More earthy smoke alongside bitter orange marmalade, cocoa-dusted truffles, subtle menthol, and grippy, spicy oak. Very long-lasting.
9/10
Benromach 21 Years Old
Colour: Honeyed gold
Nose: Slightly ashy smoke, creamy malt notes and juicy red fruit (redcurrants, raspberries). Sponge cake with vanilla buttercream and homemade strawberry jam. Oily orange notes, crème caramel, apricot Danish pastries, and hints of white pepper and fennel tops.
Palate: Ripe autumnal fruits — plum, pear and red apple. Orange peel (with the pith), rich caramel, sultanas, more buttery pastry and maltiness, and hints of leather and pepper. A savoury note from the peak smoke runs beneath.
Finish: The smoke comes through as charred wholegrain toast, joined by plum compote, pear drops and light tannins.
8/10
Conclusions
It’s rare to find a whisky that straddles two flavor camps as approachably as Benromach. It offers the fruity bursts you would hope for from a Speysider, coupled with curls of smoke that should satisfy fans of a peated dram. Add to that the well-balanced wood influence, and you have a single malt worth showing up for. While the “lower” bottling strength may cause a few noses to upturn, it makes these whiskies incredibly accessible and the flavor certainly isn’t suffering.
Where to buy Benromach
In the US, Benromach is available through Total Wine & More, both in-store and online, as well as Binny’s in Illinois. It’s also available in the UK through retailers including The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt, in European markets including Germany and France, and in Asian markets including Taiwan.
