Tag Archives: Contrasts

Benromach Contrasts: Organic 2012/2021 (46%, OB, Virgin American Oak, 09/04/21, 210104)

This is the world’s first certified organic Single Malt Scotch Whisky since 2006. Fully UK Soil Association accredited. Words coming from the label of this Benromach. Benromach received certification in October of 2000, and starting distilling right away. They released the first fully certified Organic Whisky in 2006. However, it was Deanston who were certified first, in April of 2000, and started distilling right after summer. However, Deanston’s first release (batch 1) wasn’t bottled until early 2016 as a 15yo. Bottled in February, released in March. Batch 2 was released a year later in 2017. Both matured in Bourbon Casks. 2017 also saw the release of a 14yo Deanston Organic that has been matured in Virgin oak, just like our Benromach, so back to Benromach for now, but I’m sure we’ll see a Deanston Organic grace these pages as well somewhere in the future.

Since such Whiskies, like the “Contrasts”, are released in (big) batches, there are some slight differences in the codes used on the bottles. Codes are often useful for identifying different batches with different characteristics. Looking at you Springbank Distillery. For this particular release I have seen two rotations (but there are probably more): 210191 06.04.2021 (Tuesday) Imported by Schlumberger of Germany and 210104 09.04.2021 (Friday) Imported by Van Wees of The Netherlands. The latter bottle is the one I have here, bottled in the same work week as the “German” bottling, so it is highly unlikely that it contains different Whisky from the Dutch one, but you never know.

Color: Full Gold.

Nose: Sweet, big and grassy. Barley sugar and creamy vanilla. Caramel. The green vegetal note, which I like very much, turns from hay and grass into wood. Smells clean and very nice. It reminds me of how I perceived the smell of Whisky when I was introduced to it a long time ago. This might be a simple Whisky in many books: it is probably only 8 years old, maybe 9 years, it is virgin oak and it is reduced to 46% ABV. But even though virgin oak has been adopted very late in Scotland, a Whisky like this does show some of the essence of what Whisky is all about. Whisky has always been something based on barley, yeast, water and wood. Although the wood was never really virgin oak, no mostly ex-Bourbon barrels and hogsheads and ex-Sherry butts, puncheons and hogsheads. That’s it. Sure this “Contrasts” is named after organic Barley, and it surely does play its part, but Virgin Oak is dominant. It is new wood, that has been charred/toasted, giving off these creamy and grassy notes. Vanillin form the oak mostly, yet also slightly burnt notes like charcoal and cold toast. In this bottling, the wood shows us some wonderful, almost perfumy notes behind this big creamy wall, a wall which luckily has many big holes in it so we can see (smell) beyond. The grass and vegetal traits have great staying power, and sometimes a more perfumy note whiffs by, and sometimes also a more distant greasy and gravy-like note, making it temporarily a bit cheeky and dirty (petrol?). A playful, dare I say, fruity acidity and an overall very rewarding nose. Nothing wrong here, the nose really turned out well.

Taste: Quite a lot of wood and White Wine-like vanilla notes, Definitely virgin oak, which differs considerably from first fill and refill Bourbon casks. Caramel and toffee and lots of different woody notes. Clean fresh oak, sawdust and hits of a burned beam. More of the leather and wood of a classic interior than of something youthful, colorful and fruity. Slightly heavy built. Interesting, but I guess maybe not for everyone. I do hope Benromach continues with the Contrasts: Organic, but will also release versions maturing in refill casks (only) and first fill barrels/hogsheads (only). So to educate ourselves what the influence of the wood was and to better understand the Organic Barley. Also to know of the barley variety would be a bonus to us, maybe in small print as not to distract from the Organic bit which gave this bottling its name. Second sip shows us more of the char the wood received, releasing this bourbon-like vanilla yet also some more woody bitterness. Pencil shavings come to mind now, but also a slight shortcoming in the balance department. Looks like you should bottle Virgin oak early, as I said, it is overpowering and puts more of a stamp on the Whisky than the barley variety ever could. I wonder how the Deanston 14yo (also virgin oak, would fare in the bitterness department, since it was aged almost twice as long). I do understand the restraint about using virgin oak in the past. It does overpower and the Whisky also does show a lack of complexity, yet it is still fun. If you also like your Bourbons than chances are you might like a virgin oak Scotch as well, not saying its similar to Bourbon, because it isn’t, if only based on the ingredients used.

Looks like the contrast series could be a very interesting series, also an educational one. The last review I did of a “Contrasts”, focused on a barley variety called Cara Gold. This time around no mention of any barley variety, but organic it sure is.

Are you experienced? In a way that you can approach any Whisky with an open mind, I assure you, you won’t be disappointed with this one. You won’t believe how many people discard a Whisky beforehand because of the price or bases on assumptions. These Benromachs are fun and also quite inexpensive. When this bottle will be empty I will be very happy to replace it with another contrasts. Sure, this Whisky was recorded in Mono. It is clean and virgin oak. End of story.

Points: 83

Benromach Contrasts: Cara Gold Malt 11yo 2010/2022 (46%, OB, First Fill Bourbon Barrels, 20/01/22)

I almost forgot to write this review, because I though I’d already done it. Here we have the first Benromach on these pages after they revamped the look in to this slightly bulkier glass bottle, more straightforward cardboard box (easier to store) and last but not least the usage of the colour red. I was a bit hesitant at first because I really liked the copper they used in the previous package, but the red stands out, looks fresh, smart and traditional. So I do like the new look a lot now, and love having them around. If this one’s empty, I’ll probably replace it with another (red) Benromach. Most likely another one from the contrasts series, since it offers interesting takes on Malt. Here it is because of the usage of Cara Gold barley.

Most Benromachs that are on the market now are fairly young, sure there are some older bottlings like the 15yo and the 21yo, which are different yet not necessarily better. The Whisky at hand is 11yo and a nice choice for starting a flight of Whiskies or as a casual sipper. Not expensive and an honest pour. Benromach produces a heavier more meaty spirit, often slightly peated and sits well with knowledgeable anoraky aficionados, you know who you are, and since you are reading this, you’re probably one of them. This particular offering is partly made with Whisky made from Cara Gold barley as well as the normal Benromach lightly peated malt, both matured in first fill Bourbon barrels.

Color: Straw.

Nose: Sweet barley first, very appealing and very aromatic. Clean, fresh, fruity and malty with malt sugars and a nice layer of dust and paper-like aroma’s adding to the whole. Nice fresh wood tones, but nothing overpowering or off. Straightforward without any frills. Candied wood and candied yellow fruit, with hints of sweet smelling smoke, as well as some licorice. Clean and modern, although some yesteryear comes through as well. More wood (perfumed, highly aromatic) and wax with ripe yellow fruits. The label claims tropical notes, and sure enough… My perception of the fruit depends on the moment I’m smelling this. The first time around I wasn’t all too sure about the fruitiness, but the second time around, yes, here it is. I recently recovered from a nasty variant of the flu, and now that the nose is working again, I certainly pick up more on the fruit now! I’m very pleased with this Benromach. It smells very nice, accessible, balanced and its very aromatic and appealing. Well made, wonderful stuff and very affordable as well. After smelling this on many occasions over time, the fruity bit does wear off if you keep this for a while in your glass, focussing on the dusty and woody notes. Still soft and friendly though.

Taste: On entry, sweet smoke and sweet licorice. More subdued fruits. Candied Barley. You could smell it already, but it is most welcome tasting it. 46% ABV is a very nice drinking strength, definitely better, for modern Malts, than 40% or 43% ABV. Back in the day 40% ABV worked well, think of very old Gordon & MacPhail bottlings, like early Connoisseurs Choice bottlings (brown label, map label etc.) Yet Malts from this century definitely need a higher strength, higher than 43% if you ask me. Sweet, woody, spicy, somewhat bitter and slightly fruity (less so than in the nose). Tropical, well maybe. The wood has more to say here than it did on the nose. So more wood, slightly harsh even and showing some bitterness. The smoke is here as well and in the triangle between the wood, the smoke and the bitterness, it does take away a bit from the balance of the palate. A new sip with a fruity start masks the bitter bit for a moment. The finish is not very long and not a lot of it carries over into the aftertaste. But almost all you get is good (it turns out the bitterness has the longest staying power). No off notes. A very pleasant, fairly simple (it doesn’t develop a lot) and affordable dram. There is some diluted vanilla present, proving the maturation on (first fill) American oak. By the way, due to the bitter note this has, it isn’t entirely a casual sipper. Good, but I preferred the nose over the palate.

By itself a (partial) Cara Gold offering isn’t saying very much, it would be really interesting to have several Benromach bottlings, like this one, made with different barley varieties, open at the same time, to be able to compare them to each other. I checked my stash, but there isn’t another one at hand. A bere barley version would be nice, come to think of it, because bottlings like this remind me of the rebooted Springbank Local Barley series, where the Bere Barley version bottled in 2017 is my favourite. Yes I often prefer it over the 16yo and the dark 10yo. Sure the 16yo and the dark 10yo are great and definitely stellar as well, but the 11yo from 2017 is so good! Don’t be fooled by higher numbers or the colour of Whisky! Final remark, this particular Benromach worked best for me in a small tulip glass, a narrow, long stemmed Riedel for instance as opposed to a bigger glass, like the Holmegaard Perfection Spirit Glass. Both are very good, yet different. Good glassware always shows you more sides of the Whisky you’re drinking, so I do recommend to invest in good and several different pieces of glassware. It makes exploring your dram a lot more fun!

Points: 85