Benriach Distillery

About the distillery

Benriach is located in North Speyside and is a distillery with a clear desire to challenge the classic Speyside style. Here, three expressions are worked with — classic unpeated, Highland peated and triple distilled — and with casks sourced from many parts of the world. The result is whiskies built up layer by layer with fruit, spice, smoke and deep cask character.

History

Benriach was founded in 1898 by John Duff on the site of the old Riach farm in northern Speyside. Already two years later, the distillery had to close as a result of the Pattison Crash, and production stood still for many years. Nevertheless, the site did not disappear from the whisky landscape, because floor maltings continued to operate and delivered malt to the neighboring Longmorn, while the buildings were preserved. In 1965, Benriach resumed its own malt whisky production following a renovation under Glenlivet Distillers Ltd. In the early 1970s, the distillery began experimenting with peated spirit, and in the 1990s, triple distillation was added as well. After being taken over by a consortium led by Billy Walker in 2004, development quickly continued on both the unpeated and peated styles, and in 2017 Dr. Rachel Barrie joined as Master Blender. In 2020, the portfolio took on a new expression with a modern design and a core range that traced threads back to the first single malt from 1994.

Raw materials and production

Benriach builds its spirit on mineral-rich water drawn from an underground aquifer beneath the distillery grounds. During mashing, four water washes are used instead of the usual three, and the longer process is intended to extract maximum sweetness from the grain. After fermentation, a fruity wash is created, which is an important part of the house style. The distillery works with three whisky styles: classic unpeated, Highland peated and triple distilled, and the triple distillation is carried out in small batches once a year. Benriach describes its approach as slow and deliberate, and it is clearly designed to provide a spirit base that can carry the great variation in casks. Added to this are the historic floor maltings, which are still used on site and once a year are hand-malted with selected barley. It is a rare practice, and it gives the house a direct connection to the old craft, which is still part of its identity.

Maturation and cask types

Maturation is one of Benriach’s strongest distinguishing features. The house spirit is matured in a wide selection of casks sourced from around the world, and both American virgin oak, bourbon casks, red wine casks, Marsala, port, Madeira, rum and sherry are used. Virgin oak contributes toasted oak spice and nutty caramel, bourbon with vanilla sweetness, orchard fruit and almond, while red wine casks provide berry fruit, milk chocolate and spice. Port and sherry are used for deeper fruit, chocolate and praline, and in special releases, small octave casks are also seen, where the intense contact between spirit and wood drives maturation in a more concentrated direction.

Whiskies

The current portfolio brings together the house’s most important expressions from the classic core range to the more exclusive bottlings. At the core are The Original Ten, The Smoky Ten, The Twelve, The Twenty One, The Twenty Five and The Thirty, which together show the range from fresh Speyside fruit to a more mature, deep and cask-driven character. In addition, there are luxury releases such as The Forty and The Forty Octave Cask Matured, as well as the Malting Season series, which highlights the house’s floor maltings. Shared across the range is a clear focus on layering, mature fruits and a cask-driven approach that gives each whisky its own profile.

Whisky style and taste profile

Benriach moves between orchard fruit, citrus and berry fruit on the one hand, and darker notes of chocolate, plum and walnut on the other. Bourbon casks add vanilla sweetness and almond, while virgin oak provides toasted oak spice and nutty caramel. In the peated expressions, smoke is often accompanied by ripe fruit sweetness, and in the more wine-influenced versions, sweet orange, apricot cream, candied grape, baked fruit and spiced mocha come into play.

Visit the distillery

Benriach welcomes visitors in North Speyside, where you can book a tour and end with a whisky tasting. The visit is built around the journey from barley to bottle, so guests gain insight into production, the three whisky styles and the cask work. Booking is in advance, and the official visitor experience is clearly presented as a guided introduction to the distillery’s craft and tasting universe.
See times and book a visit.

Philosophy and craft

Benriach is driven by a stated desire to explore flavour possibilities without letting go of the craft. The identity is built on three whisky styles, an eclectic cask approach, and a continuing interest in pushing the boundaries of how layered a Speyside single malt can become. That is also why the house highlights both the historic floor maltings, the slow distillation, and the role of Master Blender Dr. Rachel Barrie as the person who brings the many elements together into a whole.

Awards and recognition

• Global Whisky Distiller of the Year (2015, Winner)

Latest news

Benriach celebrates creative heritage with 40 year old malts – 2024-01-03

Benriach expanded the luxury portfolio with The Forty and The Forty Octave Cask Matured. The Forty is based on peated casks and shows mature fruit, chocolate, plum and walnut; The Forty Octave Cask Matured is bottled in 134 bottles and matured in small octave casks.

Benriach honours historic craft with malting season – 2024-01-03

The third annual edition of Malting Season was launched with concerto barley from the distillery’s floor maltings and maturation in virgin oak and first-fill bourbon casks.