Ben Bracken
7.4

Ben Bracken

Islay Single Malt

ABV 40%

Earthy and fruity at the same time.

Laura Foster

Specification

Islay Single Malt

Expression

Single Malt

Type

No age statement

Age (Years)

2017

Year of Bottling

40%

ABV

Islay

Region/Country

Independent Bottling

Bottling Type

Tasting Notes

Laura Foster

Taster

Nose: The peat is strong with this one. Hospital corridors, cough sweets, coal embers and burning mosquito coils. Bamboo shoots, chopped almonds and walnuts with fruity nectarine pits and raspberries.

Palate: Very ashy. Like scooping soil into your mouth and washing down with burnt coffee. Vanilla pod and powdery dark chocolate. Silky/oily mouthfeel, slides over the tongue.

Finish: Short and dry. Gravelly. That and cocoa powder.

Comment: Earthy and fruity at the same time.

Score: 7

Mark Newton

Taster

Nose: Gorgeously sweet peat, and slides into the medicinal: TCP and iodine. Underneath, heather honey and earthy tones, with toffee and baked apples.

Palate: Not as pleasant. The peat is ashier, drier; the sweetness is milder. Vegetative, mossy and brackish. Brine. Light olive oil. Honey and apples, but lingers in that earthy place.

Finish: Warming, but very short and dry – it’s not that balanced, and suffers for it.

Comment: What was promising ended a bit of a disappointment. Something good here, but lacks clout.

Score: 7.7

7.4
Overall Score

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