Ben Nevis 1996 - Wu Dram Clan - 24 years old - 45,6%
Picture taken somewhere in Stuttgart
It's more than overdue that we talk about Ben Nevis. Not sure what took us so long (Grape of the Art most propably). The legendary 1996 Vintage and the gold diggers from Wu Dram County need no introduction, so let's not waste time and spill the beans.
Nose
Imagine a soup of crushed, mineralic rocks, the finest apple cider from Hessen (Germany), vanilla pods, manuca honey, pieces of new carton and slices of apricots. Now, who likes that? Well, we fu**ing do! It feels more like fine Chichibu than Ben Nevis, but both profiles often overlap in our opinion, especially when Ben Nevis falls on the mineralic side. Not uber-complex, but straight to the point.
Palate
Blessed be the fruit! Silky and smooth like a snake's skin. Therefore the psychedelic snakes on the label we suppose. One can sip this like coffee for breakfast. Due to the abv It's light-bodied, but the balance is phenomenal. The sweetness of the brightest honey (brighter than acacia) melts with an austerity of Grappa-y grapemark (caution: tongue twister!). See, there are also the apples, a full quarry of minerals and vanilla cake. The texture is pretty waxy, like we actually know it from the old Clynelishs.
Finish
Long and pretty dry. The only thing missing is that the minerals grind on the teeth.
Rating
We consider Ben Nevis Grand Gru. That's a fact. So it's not a hard task to rate this juicy and perfectly balanced hybrid of Clynelish, Apple Cider, Chichibu and Grappa a winner. But one has to be a lover of the mineralic and dry stuff to appreciate this style. We must start bribing these Wu's to find out how they get hold on these gems (everyone has their price).
