Benriach, The Sixteen, 16-Year-Old, Speyside, Single Malt Scotch Whisky (43%)
About this SPIRIT
Benriach Distillery, Speyside
Benriach Distillery was established in 1898 by the Grant family on the same site as Longmorn Distillery. It was mothballed two years after commencing production due to the ‘Pattison Crash’.
In 1965, Glenlivet Distillers re-opened the distillery after a period that saw most of the distillery being rebuilt. In 1978, Benriach was purchased by the Canadian whisky firm Seagrams and was extended from two stills to four. In April 2004, three entrepreneurs led by Scotch Whisky industry veteran Billy Walker acquired the distillery. The company was bought in 2016 by Brown Forman.
In 2007, the distillery extended its core range with three-peated single malt expressions: Herodotus Fumosus, Importanticus Fumosus, and Arumaticus Fumosus. Each malt is distilled from heavily peated malted barley, aged for 12 years and finished in either Pedro Ximenez Sherry butts (Herodotus), Aged Tawny Port hogsheads (Importanticus), or Dark Rum barrels (Arumaticus).
The core range includes The Twelve, The Twenty One, The Twenty Five, and The Thirty. The range was also extended to The Forty in 2022. The distillery's signature style is a richly flavoured malt, emphasising honey, vanilla, and heather flowers, with sweet spices and milk chocolate overtones.
(Adapted from the Malt Whisky Yearbook 2024)
Speyside Whisky
To some Speyside represents the jewel in whisky’s crown. Speyside is the home of legal whisky production and it’s best known examples. Around the world Glenlivet, Macallan, Glenfiddich, Glenrothes and Glenfarclas typify all that whisky, at it’s best has to offer. At it’s heart running from the Monadhliath mountains north to the sea, is the River Spey. It is the fastest flowing river in Britain, and also well known for its salmon fishing.
Speyside is the principal whisky-producing region: Speyside has within it some forty-six operating distilleries - over half the total number in the entire Scotland.
Speysides are essentially sweet whiskies. They have little peaty character They are typically highly perfumed, feminine and elegant.
The classical nature of Speyside’s malts means that a number of the finest malts are used almost exclusively for blending. It is the top Speysider’s that give good blends their ‘Top Dressing’.
Malts such as Mortlach, Glen Elgin, Strathmill and Benrinnes are rarely found as distillery bottlings, however when individual casks are tracked down by independent bottlers such as our Own Selection Single Malt Whiskies the resultant whisky can be quite wonderful.
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Description
Established in 1898 in North Speyside, Benriach Distillery has long been celebrated for its innovative, diverse whisky production methods. The distillery operates its own floor maltings, allowing the team greater control over the malting process. The Sixteen was first launched in the early 2000s and is aged in a combination of bourbon, sherry and virgin oak casks to maximise the range of flavours in the final whisky.
Iain Glover, Spirits Advisor, Berry Bros. & Rudd
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