Fun Fact – Historical whisky research indicates BenRiach was the first distillery within
Speyside to re-introduce peated malt into its whisky making back in the 1970’s, a time when most Speyside distillers had moved their focus towards unpeated malt distillation. And the new 21 year old Benriach on the block, or so is this new expression called ‘Temporis’ , is just that – a peated well aged single malt.
The name Temporis, meaning ‘time’ in Latin, emulates the original character and flavour of Speyside malts in the nineteenth century. To create the new expression, Master Blender Rachel Barrie has married together an eclectic mix of not one, but… four casks: Bourbon barrels, virgin oak, Pedro Ximenez sherry and Oloroso sherry casks.
BenRiach 21 Year Old Temporis, 46% , £135
Nose: The nose is lovely, with a touch of wood BBQ char, grilled pears and also orange peel, and pine. There’s a nice touch of peat as well in addition to sweet pastries, and a sour touch (sherry at work).
Palate: The palate packs more punch, with a peppery , peaty tang , more orange peel and a nice sweet vanilla cream, with bits of caramelized pineapple and a touch of dried fruit and a hint of rum, cinnamon and clove, ending on sweet smoke, and more pepper.
Finish: Cinnamon sprinkled buns made in a wood stove, toasted nuts, and the peat embers in the background.
Conclusion:
All in all this is a lovely whisky, I would expect a bit more complexity and wood notes at such an age, however it’s well mixed and blended, and the four cask types integrate quite nicely to produce a highly enjoyable peated Benriach with a twist. Non Islay peat to enjoy! VFM is not very high but it’s a nice addition to any whisky fan’s shelf…
Score: 88/100
Available for £ 135 at MOM