Benrinnes 1985

Overall rating
89.20/100
votes
274
Whiskybase ID
WB10608
Category
Single Malt
Distillery
Bottler
Distillery Bottling
Bottling serie
Diageo Special Releases 2009
Vintage
1985
Bottled
12.03.2009
Stated Age
23 years old
Casktype
Sherry Wood
Number of bottles
6000
Strength
58.8 % Vol.
Size
700 ml
Bottle code
L9 071 CM000
Barcode
5000281026084
Added on
24 sep 2009 6:13 pm
Non-chillfilteredCask Strength
Benrinnes 1985
Photo by Bachess
Benrinnes 1985
Photo by DarkSideOfTheMalt

Average value

€ 608.84

Found 7 online shops. Lowest price:

€ 495.00
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Whisky reviews for Benrinnes 1985

39 users have left 42 reviews for this whisky. Average rating is 89.20 points.

  1. Corso_theRed scored this whisky 95 points Expert Senior

    This is beautiful malt whisky. However, I might be biased too, because
    I’m insensitive to sulfur AND simply love sherry bombs. The bottles are
    becoming scarcer, and the retail price already doubled in the last
    couple of years. If you can still find it somewhere, grab a bottle – or a
    case! You wouldn’t think twice if this was an imaginary Macallan CS
    20yo.
    • Nose
      Neat: Pungent alcohol followed by bold sherry notes. Then
      sweet oak and heavy molasses, which remind me of aged rum. Mocha beans
      and prunes! The slight flintiness is ephemeral. Pretty perfect so far –
      everything you’d want from an aged sherry bomb! After a while, there is
      even a hint of smoke.

      With water: A freshly cut oak tree, saw dust, more prunes
      and rum-soaked chocolate cake. You can drink this perfectly at cask
      strength though.
    • Taste
      Neat: A lashing of raisins and plums. Cinnamon! Overall it
      is quite Christmas-cakey similar to Glendronach 21 Parliament. The
      palate is rather balanced; alternating between pruney, raisiny sweetness
      and zesty orange notes. It’s a convergence of old rum, brandy, and
      sherried whiskies.

      With water: Gorgeous. Marzipan, crisp oak, and licorice.
    • Finish
      Very long. Juicy wine notes. Dark chocolate, obligatory tannins, and more licorice.

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  3. Tomek scored this whisky 91 points Expert Senior

    Fragrance: fruit power, leather strap, tobacco, cake oils, cows, ripe gooseberry,
    taste: again fruits - cherries, cherries, blackberries, then wet skin, cigar smoke, dark chocolate
    finish: lingering taste, a bit of oak bitterness, Donald gum
    rating: 7

  4. Kaysersdråber scored this whisky 88 points Member Senior

    • Nose
      87 87
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      89 89

  5. tw_xbein scored this whisky 80 points Expert Junior

    nice whisky (9.4.2010)
    • Nose
      78 78
      dry, slightly sharp from the barrel strength, spicy notes
    • Taste
      83 83
      strong start as a barrel filling but rather light body, malty with sherry aromas, meadow, herbs, hay, straw
    • Finish
      78 78
      short and easy

  6. jttoft did not rate this whisky Expert Junior

    WOW!
    • Nose
      Crazily sweet sherry nose. Reduced raisin juice and fig syrup. A hint of something mineral. Intense. A hint of distillate behind it all.
      Creamy toffee note.
    • Taste
      Starting lightly bitter. Then spicy. Then sweet. Very flavourful. Old fashioned sherry. Chocolate, both dark and milk. And yes, a bit of sulphur, but it doesn't bother me in the slightest.
      Far less sweet than the nose.
    • Finish
      Chocolate. Dark and drying.
      Fantastic whisky.

  7. captwilks67 scored this whisky 89 points Member Senior

    Benrinnes 23 OB review

    Just poured a small taster for myself.

    Nose: right off the bat I get seared meat juice, dark fruits, cigar/tobacco. After a minute chocolate nougat, and rum soak raisins. Going to set it down and come back to it in 10 minutes...

    Leather and rum soaked raisins. The chocolate has settled.

    With water: the seared meat juice gets brighter. Marmalade and more rum soaked raisins

    Palate: rum and oak. Tongue drying heat. Raisins and more oak.

    With water: a peppery sweetness... must be the sulphur. Less oak and more dark fruit. It is sweeter now. Definitely needs a lot of air. It’s pent up.

    Finish: there’s a slight bitterness and chalkiness, no doubt coming from sulphur. Then I get tobacco and leather

    With water: oaky

    Conclusion: one of the best whiskies I’ve nosed since the LMDW Blair Athol. There’s a lot going on and it all works really well together. The palate loses points for me. It’s very oak dominant and the sulphur is evident here. I think this needs a few weeks to truly show its colors.

  8. Hognia scored this whisky 89 points Member Senior

  9. WillWhisky scored this whisky 87 points Expert Senior

    Nice old sherry nose, I like it, hints of milk and cream shortly.

    Consistant old sherry taste, a bit spicy, tea leaves, sweet, some dark coffee in the end

  10. Whiskydufftown scored this whisky 87 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      86 86
    • Taste
      86 86
    • Finish
      90 90

  11. Calmar scored this whisky 93 points Connoisseur

    Magnificent molt, tremendous power and depth, unity and struggle of barrels and basics, harmony of opposition and mutual absorption, complexity, depth, shades and half tones, all this is in the right quantities for maximum enjoyment, unless you, of course, suffer from sulfur intolerance derivatives, in this case, the acquaintance is better not even start.
    • Nose
      Open, dry, mass of sherry derivatives, thick, complex, spicy wood and furniture varnish are replaced by sulfur shades, burnt matches and sparklers, gunpowder, rotten notes, metal motifs, boiled vegetables, mineral tones, sweet waves, caramel, teriyaki sauce, burnt jam, creamy toffee, boiled condensed milk.
    • Taste
      Powerful, rich, sweet wood, furniture lacquer, baklava, buckwheat honey, burnt caramel, burnt rusks, stout notes, licorice, old leather goods, tobacco leaf, mint, dark chocolate.
    • Finish
      Soft, spicy, continuation of taste on the descending, smooth attenuation with a predominance of sweet-sour notes, oak, caramel, cola, varnish tones, light mineral-metal motifs, shoe cream.

  12. Tom na Gruagaich scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    Intense sherry malt. Bittersweet. Very spicy and not sticky at all. That's really great whisky.

  13. GLEN MAUR scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      87 87
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      90 90

  14. dRambo scored this whisky 91 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      92 92
    • Taste
      91 91
    • Finish
      92 92

  15. dRambo scored this whisky 91 points Connoisseur

    yes cool - that's Darksherry times without negative interpretation - harmoniously connected and beautiful long attacks - yummy
    • Nose
      a touch of sulfur, some iron in the air, pomegranate, raspberries, light coastal breeze, slightly dry, herbal - green branches, behind them cherries from the rum pot, Mon Cherie, plums, sherry scent, shoe polish, mint
    • Taste
      intense dark cooked cherries - aromatic - sweet - fruity, loads of dark chocolate, tobacco, leather jacket, mint, laurel, fresh olive, very nice play of tannins on the palate - the alcohol stands out a bit (undiluted) but stays in a pleasant frame, you can really to chew for a very long time
    • Finish
      Zigrarrenzimmer, men's chocolate, Schwarzwälderkirschtorte, Kirschmarmelade, becoming woodier in the finish, full-bodied, long, intense

  16. Cast Olila scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      92 92
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      91 91

  17. mr.p9 scored this whisky 90 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      92 92
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      90 90

  18. OlivierSegers scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      89 89
    • Finish
      88 88

  19. markjedi1 scored this whisky 86 points Connoisseur

    Roast beef with Nutella

    Benrinnes is a whisky you don’t see very often. It is one of those anonymous work horses for Diageo that produces bulk malts for blends like Johnnie Walker, J&B, Crawfords and the like. There are just a few official bottlings and this is one of them. It hit the shelves in 2009 as part of Diageo’s yearly Special Release and matured on sherry casks.

    Wonderfully juicy nose on roast beef with Nutelle (and that is not a joke). It is pretty umami and sweet at the same time. It flirts with sulphur, but never quite crosses that line. Au contraire. It becomes wonderfully fruity on plums and dades, hazelnuts and dried figs. There is also a herbal side to it. And some leather, making it somewhat dry.

    Lovely, feisty arrival and immediately very sweet on Nutella and rum raisins. Very spicy indeed. Cardamom and mustard seeds. The roast beef returns, as do the plums and dades. You can almost chew it and I just love it. It does not need water (and truth be told, my sample is too small to give that a try).

    The oak becomes quite loud in the very long finish, making this Benrinnes dry your mouth completely.

    Very good and very complex animal. Checking my notes, it seems this is only my 5th Benrinnes so far. Well, you do not see it that often with Indies either. Used to be 150 EUR, today – if you can still find it – you’ll have to double that amount.

  20. ApricotOne scored this whisky 91 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      92 92
    • Taste
      91 91
    • Finish
      91 91

  21. Unclimbability did not rate this whisky Member Senior

    Scores an average of 93.5 on Reddit's r/Scotch and is one of the best rated whiskies on there.

    I have not tasted it myself yet!

  22. mister glenfarclas scored this whisky 93 points Connoisseur

    Terrific whisky. I guess one of the best I ever had. Now I'm even more said that I didn't buy a bottle for like 100€ when I had the chance some years ago.
    • Nose
      Heavy sherry influence right from the start with quite some sulphur. Sour wine gum. Behind that some dry oak. The alcohol is trying to show up but the sherry is too dominant.
      Amazing nose!!!
    • Taste
      What a powerful start. Overwhelming! Sweet, sour, bitter all at once. Heavysherry, old dusty oak. Lots of sulphur.
      Even more intense with some drops of water.
    • Finish
      You would think of a hint of peat smoke but that's just this old oak giving it a rusty, slightly bitter but not dry aftertaste. Lingering on for like ever. Absolutely lovely!

  23. Kimba scored this whisky 89 points Expert Junior

    The taste can not quite keep up with the nose. However, the whining is on a high level. That's a great part. 89 points from me. (Blind sample of oldie thank you)
    • Nose
      I do not know what I have in the glass ...
      but it's already world-class from the nose!
      Super heavy red berries and sherry and wood and everything ... wow. Alcohol too ... but not annoying rather he flatters his nose with a cool freshness behind this heavy thing ...

      Mouth: creamy mouthfeel. The alcohol is now clearly noticeable. The sweetness is more direct and the fruits brighter ... he is not quite as rumored as he was in the nose ...

      I think I've had this before ... I think he needs water too ...

      At the moment it is still a very good whisky but the taste is behind the nose ...

      The finish has a lot of marzipan .. and a little bit of bitterness ..
    • Taste
      creamy mouthfeel. The alcohol is now clearly noticeable. The sweetness becomes more direct and the fruits a little brighter ... he is not quite as "rumored" as he was in the nose ...

      I think I've had this before ... I think he needs water too ...

      At the moment it is still a very good whisky but the taste is behind the nose ...

      The finish has a lot of marzipan .. and a little bit of bitterness ..
    • Finish
      The finish has a lot of marzipan .. and a little bit of bitterness .. Very nice combo.

  24. Sir Mac scored this whisky 92 points Member Junior

    Heavy and oliy sherried Whisky. Great Single Malt!

  25. ML89 scored this whisky 87 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      88 88
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      85 85

  26. guerriero82 scored this whisky 86 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      88 88
    • Finish
      86 86

  27. lincolnimp scored this whisky 91 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      89 89
    • Taste
      92 92
    • Finish
      91 91

  28. lincolnimp scored this whisky 91 points Connoisseur

    With water the nose has notes of coffee now and the palate is silky smooth on dark berries/fruits.

    The finish is still long and smooth.

    This is a sherry heads dream, a lovely sherried whisky.
    • Nose
      Figs, ripe plum, plump juicy raisins and rich fruit cake, excellent nose.

      If you leave it a little time you get chocolate cherry liqueur.
    • Taste
      Powerful, in fact very powerful, even more of a smack in your face that some Aberlour A`bunadh offerings when fresh out of the bottle.

      I still get cherry and raisin, figs and moist jam sponge
    • Finish
      Very long, and a little sweet. There is no bitterness whatsoever.

  29. Black Widow scored this whisky 88 points Expert Senior

    This Whisky was sold for 233,-€ at Whiskyauction 11/2015

  30. Georges scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      90 90
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      90 90

  31. Georges scored this whisky 90 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      Sherry, herbs, chocolate, mushrooms, leather, peppery, fruity (berries, cherries)
    • Taste
      Sherry, creamy, oily, prunes, toffee, liquorice, orange marmalade, raisins
    • Finish
      Long, sweet, spicy (pepper, cinnamon)

  32. barryfox915 scored this whisky 75 points Expert Senior

    Colour: Amber.
    Nose: Yeasty, rich, on freshly made rubber, tangerine,
    orange, cinnamon, heather and some light floral flavours.
    Taste: Fresh, yeasty, on citrus, orange, spices, nutmeg and a
    lot of newly made rubber. The finish is medium, rubbery, dry, on orange, leather
    and cinnamon.
    General Impression: A very sherried Benrinnes, with strong
    rubbery notes, from rubber of high grade.

    http://www.whisky-news.com/En/tasting13.html#11dec09

     

     

  33. RL_whisky scored this whisky 88 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      88 88
    • Taste
      86 86
    • Finish
      87 87

  34. whioli scored this whisky 91 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      91 91
    • Taste
      90 90
    • Finish
      92 92

  35. Rossi99 scored this whisky 87 points Member Senior

    A heavy and rough sherried whisky but I like the pineapple acids in the aftertaste. It's interesting!

  36. Furtia scored this whisky 86 points Connoisseur

    • Nose
      87 87
    • Taste
      85 85
    • Finish
      85 85

  37. St. Pauli scored this whisky 89 points Connoisseur

    The nose is versatile and promising. For the taste, I advise to add a few drops of water to edge off the bitterness. The finish is long and lingering. A bottle for those who like to have some balance and complexity.
     
    • Nose
      Very rich, sherry, maple sirup, spices and leather.
      With water it becomes earthier: moss, fallen leaves, mushrooms
    • Taste
      It starts sweet (sherry, sirup, barley), but has firm bitterness too (herbs such as pepper).  Adding water makes it more accessible and adds notes of ham and mushrooms.
    • Finish
      Very long and intense. It becomes sweeter again, putting the malt and the spices on the foreground, pushing the sherry and sirup back. Again, with water I taste some earthy tones and ham.

  38. Hvem? scored this whisky 88 points Expert Senior

    From the bottle:

    Caramelised sugar and intense prune fruit introduce a nose of superb balance and complexity. The palate is powerfully sweet, then mouth-drying, with voluptuous sweetness balanced by a light smokiness. A deliciously mature malt that`s full of fruit, fire and even brimstone!

  39. Whisky1978 scored this whisky 88 points Expert Senior

    A beautiful oily fruity whisky!

  40. cuhp scored this whisky 86 points Expert Senior

    Overall a really good sherry whisky (21
    points)
    • Nose
      Sherry, red berries, dark chocolate, raisins (and other dried fruits), pepper (23 points)
    • Taste
      Sherry,
      wood, spices, salt, leather (22 points) 
    • Finish
      Salt,
      pepper, cinnamon, cloves, licorice, rubber (20 points)

  41. Fagge83 scored this whisky 88 points Member Junior

    High quality but somewhat overloaded by my standards.
    • Nose
      Prunes and heavy meat. Muscular and sweet at the same time, old Speyside-style. Tomato juice and peppery tones can be distinguished and some coffee.
    • Taste
      Takes place and requires attention. Leather. Sweet with raisins and lots of sherry. Quite smoky and a little more low key further down in the mouth.
    • Finish
      Coffee, nuts and molasses. Quite long and sweet.

  42. Lafroy scored this whisky 88 points Expert Senior

    • Nose
      Definitely sherry of two faces. On one hand there is a lot of sweetness, cherries in chocolate, sweet grapes, vanilla, roasted almonds, liquorice and a lot of leather notes, shoe polish and rubber. It gives a sense of well balance.
    • Taste
      It comes with a lot of sweetness, leather, some chemical notes and light dryness. After a while it becomes hot with hints of spiciness, shoe polish, white pepper, light salt and horse saddle. Also there are hints of dark chocolate, roasted almonds and light oak.
    • Finish
      Long and semidry with some sweetness, leather, chocolate and cherry.

  43. corbuso scored this whisky 87 points Expert Senior

    A clean, well made BenrRinnes, with quite strong newly made rubber boots. The rubbery flavours are pronouced, but as not as unpleasant as most of the other rubbery sherried whiskies.

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