BenRiach
Full Speyside food & drink guide — distilleries, restaurants, where to stay, when to go.
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One of the most experimental distilleries in Speyside — making peated, unpeated and triple-distilled spirit on the same site, and famous for adventurous wine-cask finishes.
BenRiach is Speyside's most experimental distillery — producing unpeated, lightly peated, heavily peated, and triple-distilled spirit from the same site, plus an extraordinary range of cask finishes. Since Brown-Forman's 2016 acquisition, the range has been refined but the experimental spirit remains. The 12 Year Old Original Ten is a good entry; the Smoke Season (heavily peated) is remarkable for a Speyside.
Visiting BenRiach
Contact distillery
Elgin, Moray
IV30 8SJ
- Shop
- Café/Restaurant
- Parking
Core range
The Original Ten
43% ABV · Bourbon, sherry, and virgin oak casks
Three-cask vatting from one of the few Speysides experimenting properly. Good value entry to the Benriach range.
- Nose:
- Fresh fruit, vanilla, oak, soft honey.
- Palate:
- Multi-layered — fruit, oak, vanilla, gentle sherry warmth.
- Finish:
- Medium, clean, faintly sweet.
The Smoky Ten
46% ABV · Bourbon, sherry, Jamaican rum casks; peated
Peated Speyside — Benriach is one of the few Speysides making heavily-peated spirit. The rum-cask vatting is unusual and works.
- Nose:
- Soft peat, fruit, oak, faint rum sweetness.
- Palate:
- Sweet and smoky — peat, dried fruit, oak, tropical edge from rum.
- Finish:
- Medium-long, smoky, sweet.
The Twelve
46% ABV · Bourbon, sherry, and port casks
Three-cask matured Speyside with port influence — gives a berry-driven sweetness rare in the region.
- Nose:
- Soft fruit, port-fruit sweetness, oak, vanilla.
- Palate:
- Rich — port-influenced berry, vanilla, oak spice, soft fruit.
- Finish:
- Long, sweet, drying.
Food pairings
| Whisky | Food | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Honey roast parsnips or mild curry | ||
| Smoked cheese or BBQ ribs |
Getting there
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Where to eat nearby
- Elgin town centreArea
Where to stay near BenRiach
BenRiach is on the edge of Elgin near Longmorn junction on the A941. Elgin is the practical base — 5 minutes' drive, with the full range of accommodation. Longmorn and Linkwood are both within 3 miles for a compact northern Speyside morning.
Where to stay near BenRiach
Hotels, B&Bs, and self-catering within easy reach of BenRiach.
Booking links are affiliate links — we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Location
Elgin, Moray, IV30 8SJ
View on map →Frequently asked questions
+Is BenRiach really peated?
Yes — the distillery has produced peated spirit since the early 2000s using floor maltings. The Smoke Season uses heavily peated malt from the distillery's own maltings.
+How do I know which expression to try?
Start with the Original Ten (unpeated) for classic Speyside character. Try Smoke Season (peated) if you want to see how different it gets.
+Where is BenRiach distillery?
BenRiach is in Speyside. Postcode IV30.
+When was BenRiach distillery founded?
BenRiach was founded in 1898, making it roughly 128 years old.
Compare with similar distilleries
Most similar experimental range to Bruichladdich (multiple styles, transparent production). Good alternative for drinkers who like variety within one brand.
Other distilleries owned by Brown-Forman
Distilleries that share BenRiach's corporate parent — useful context if you're comparing house styles within an owner's stable.
GlenDronach
A sherry-cask powerhouse, often spoken of alongside Macallan and Glenfarclas but at notably fairer prices. The 15 Revival in particular has a cult following.
Glenglassaugh
A coastal distillery near Portsoy with a famously interrupted history — mothballed 1986, resurrected 2008, and reclassified by the SWA from Speyside to Highland in 2009. Now owned by Brown-Forman (GlenDronach, BenRiach sister), with distinctively coastal, salty-sweet core releases.
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