Hidden Spirits Ben Nevis 2006 Aged 13 Years selected by Whisky and Alement

Style: Dark fruits and Smoky

Rating: ☆☆ [Highly Recommended]

Nose:

Sweet, alluring Maraschino cherry simmering in dense milk chocolate, absolutely delicious. Followed by a dense layer of creamy caramel, black liquorice roots and assorted herbs going into tiny bursts, leaving trails of peppermint twigs and tobacco leaves. Smoke gently infused into lemon sorbet which is placed on top of burnt maple leaves with small rock oysters served on the side. Finished with tropical fruits and agar agar.

Palate:

Reminds me of the chocolates with cherry liquor inside the core, except this is much more complex and delicious. Dark Tassie cherries beaming magnificently while sharp herbal tone giving a beautiful contrast to it. Black forest cake, shaved milk chocolate, sugar plums and liquorice chunks scattered around it. Then we have another peppermint rush, tobacco leaves and the meatiness built nicely into the dark fruits and tropical fruits core. Finish with caramel and peat smoke.

Finish:

More peat smoke lingering, more cherries, prunes and other dark fruits. A couple of chocolate chip cookies at the back. Sweet and delicious.

Thoughts:

While Ben Nevis is quite popular these days but not many bottles can reach the height of this one. I said this before, and I will say it again, with the right (sherry) cask, Ben Nevis can really show its magic – sweet, incredibly rich, powerful, sonorous and savory. The peat is pretty out there for this one, maybe a heavily peated variant I guess(?), which balances the overall complexion, slots into the structure perfectly and brings out the herbal side of the spirit. I am proud to say this exciting little gem is selected by our friends @whiskyandalement, a truly sensational drop!

[57.1% | Independent Bottling | Single Cask | 2006 Distilled | 2019 Bottled | Cask Strength | Cask Reference: WA916 | **+]

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