Where the industry is ever more driven by global demand and the efficiencies of scale, Benromach prefers to go about things in a different manner. Located on the fringes of Speyside not far from Forres, this unassuming operation has made an art of restraint.
With its limited output and hands-on methods, the distillery has a decidedly old-fashioned way of doing business that has given it a unique identity. One comes away with the sense that this is as much a place of character as it is a source of fine whisky.
Class in a cask
Speyside has a reputation for polish and fruitiness, yet Benromach is in a class of its own.
There is more texture to be found in its whiskies, more earth, and at times a hint of smoke. It is a profile born of intention; the house style is one that harks back to before modernization saw fit to remove the idiosyncrasies of most distilleries.
Here, water, copper, oak and time are still accorded the same importance they once were in the Highlands. In practice, that translates to short runs and a small team paying close heed to detail.
The scale is perhaps Benromach’s finest attribute. While a larger neighbour might put on a show of automation, the visitor to Benromach can actually get a feel for the production rhythm.
The stillhouse and its modest copper stills have the air of a workshop, not a factory floor. Even the warehouses speak of patience rather than haste. When many brands are content to talk of authenticity, Benromach simply shows it.
Tour de force
This is evident in the tour, which is no corporate exercise but a genuine look at a craft in progress. The staff will answer questions with the kind of practical knowledge that comes from experience, not a script. It is a conversation, not a presentation.
And for those who like to understand what they are drinking, the tasting is an education. One can sample the balance of orchard fruit, malt and gentle peat, or the sherry richness in some bottlings, while the guide makes the connection between the sensory notes and the choices made in the distillery – the cask, the level of peat, the equipment used.
There is a broader story to be told here as well, one that is very much of Speyside.
Identity
Benromach did not pursue expansion for the sake of it, finding value instead in its own identity. Put it alongside the likes of Dunphail or the museum distillery at Dallas Dhu and the local history comes into sharper focus. Dallas Dhu in particular is a useful point of reference for what has been lost, making Benromach’s old-school approach all the more apparent.
For a day spent in the quieter parts of Speyside, Benromach is hard to beat. It is not the loudest name in the region, nor the biggest, but there is an intimacy to the visit that is purposeful. The whisky has personality because the distillery has refused to be generic.
It is a place for those who put detail before display. In a part of Scotland where so many vie for notice, Benromach’s smallness is what makes it stand out.
Note: Dallas Dhu is reopening under the auspices of Aceo Spirits.