A Drink With… Dr Rachel Barrie

Benriach’s Master Blender, Dr Rachel Barrie, has A Drink With… Bars and Clubs to talk about the new Benriach Smoke Season, the story behind the whisky and how you can use the drink in cocktails.

Smoke Season is a new expression from Benriach, and celebrates the time of year that peated spirit runs through the stills for the Benriach Smoky whiskies. The peat used is Highland peat, which is sourced from the mainland and derived from ancient trees and heather. This character produces a distinct aromatic smoke which toasts the barley at Benriach, resulting in an intense thread of sweet smoke interwoven with Benriach’s staple orchard fruit character.

The whisky has then been two-cask matured in both American virgin oak and Bourbon barrels, designed to amplify the smoky spirit. So what does all this mean? It’s a much different kind of smoky whisky to that which most people will have experienced, and there are flavour profiles that lend it to cocktails as well.

To find out more, which the video below: