Ben Nevis 2015 6yo by Roger’s Whisky Company

27 July 2022

We’re an absolute sucker for Ben Nevis malts, so I’m glad a couple of our favourite indies do an expression from time to time. It’s an instant buy for us!

The one we have right here is a banger by Roger’s Whisky Company. Just look at that label for one! It’s a peated release that has matured for six years on a sherry cask. Oh boy, here we go:

Tasting notes

Nose

Herbal goodness, with dried grass and burnt leaves, lovely sweet malty aromas with fruits like apple, papaya and mango and candy like hints of vanilla/strawberry marshmallows. There’s also a strong farmy character, like tractors who harvest the land on a warm day. Some dung too, but definitely not in a bad way.

Palate

Sweet and drying, crisp notes of barley alternating with strong waves of sherry and Christmas cake. There’s hay and dried meat. Certainly not for the faint of heart, but also very elegant.

Finish

Driftwood, rubber and peated malt at first, but through it comes a layer of sweet barley, with an umami character. Yellow raisins and mashed apples offer a nice contrast with the peppery and smoky flavours.

At 58.4% ABV it’s a little bit more “yellow” in taste than its sister bottling (61.1%) by Scotch & Tattoos, which was darker and more like “red”. It’s a tasteful duo and great to taste them side by side.

Roger has some new releases coming very very soon, so keep an eye out!