Benriach (Menteith) 1992/2023 - 31 yo - Macbeth Series Act One

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 53.1% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

This Benriach brings together long maturation in bourbon casks and the literary concept of the Macbeth Collection. Distilled in 1992, the single malt matured for 31 years in American oak bourbon hogsheads previously used to mature whisky and was bottled in 2023. Its fruit and floral notes are accompanied by caramel and a subtle smoky, ashy accent. The release comprises 650 bottles at 53.1%; the whisky is neither chill-filtered nor coloured.

Within the Macbeth Collection, Menteith belongs to The Thanes, a group of twelve single malts representing the play's noble characters. He appears in the first act of the whisky series. The complete collection comprises 42 whiskies in six groups. To make their selection, Livingstone and Elixir Distillers translated Dave Broom's character portraits into corresponding whisky profiles. Menteith, who turns against Macbeth in the play, is represented by a mature, fruity and floral Benriach with a subtle dark note. Sir Quentin Blake designed the labels, depicting the characters as birds.

Alongside its fruity and nutty impressions, the whisky reveals vanilla, Damask rose and sandalwood. These additional facets link the sweet cask notes with its mature character. The 0.7-litre bottle comes in gift packaging.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: The nose combines fruity and floral impressions, with elderflower, apple pie and yellow cherries.
• Palate: The palate unfolds a layered, sweet and nutty combination of almonds, caramel and pecans.
• Finish: The long, smooth finish recalls walnut oil, black olives and yellow fruits.

Distillery/Bottler:

John Duff founded Benriach in 1898 on the site of the former Riach farm in northern Speyside. By 1900, the distillery had to close following the crisis surrounding the Pattison company. Its floor maltings remained operational, however, supplying the neighbouring Longmorn Distillery with malted barley. This preserved the buildings until Benriach resumed distilling its own whisky in 1965. In 1985, the number of stills increased from two to four; the 1992 vintage dates from the period after this expansion.

For this edition, Elixir Distillers is the independent bottler and Livingstone's partner. The company is backed by brothers Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh. Sukhinder began releasing his own cask bottlings in 2002 and has continued this work under the Elixir Distillers name since 2017. Oliver Chilton oversees cask selection and the marrying of whiskies for its bottlings and collaborations. For the Macbeth project, the team searched its own whisky stocks and drew on longstanding industry contacts to find spirits whose flavours suited each character.

Facts: