25/03/2022 Benriach

Benriach 27yo d.1976 (46%, Direct Wines First Cask, C#9444, b#332, b. ca 2004): nose: initially, it is custard, choux dough and éclairs (though with barely any chocolate on them). Pretty soon, an enticing aroma of buttery tropical fruits hits the back of the sinuses; mango, nectarine, peach, jackfruit. The longer it sits in the glass, the more obvious that tropical fruitiness becomes -- and who would I be to complain about it? It is not all either: sharper, more floral notes pick up -- jasmine, lily of the valley, crocuses. Mango comes back with a vengeance, warm mango slices, dripping with juice. It has a touch of wood, in the long run; wood of the comforting kind, and pan-seared plums in sizzling butter. The second nose has a drop of nail varnish, or brass polish, perhaps autumn leaves. Mouth: well, it is more astringent than one might have expected, showcasing green hazel, then young iroko. The fried plums are here, though they now feel as though the pan they were fried in was deglazed  with red-wine vinegar, and the mango, if still present, is less ripe and has the skin on, this time. On the other hand, the éclairs have vanished altogether. The second sip turns this into fruit juice, quite simply. It is hard to tell the fruits apart -- I am sure there is peach and mango, yet it also has more acidic ones, such as mandarine, or even tame grapefruit -- or is that blush orange? There is a drop of lime juice too, and kaffir lime leaves; a mix which makes for a partly-silky, partly-stripping texture. An interesting balance. Finish: long and elegant, it has the wood from the nose, as well as the fruits from the palate, which is to say: tropical-ish, not too ripe. It is a warm and persistent finish that grips the tonsils and will not let go. The second sip seems to increase the citrus in the finish -- a soft and sweetish sort of citrus; tangerine, ripe mandarine, maybe bergamot, a drop of lime and citrus foliage (clementine and kaffir lime leaves). For a second, towards the death, pineapple appears to try and make its way to the front row, yet it is easily rebuffed by much-bolder citrus (pomelo, tangerine, kaffir lime). Great Benriach. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)