Benriach has long occupied a fascinating position within Speyside — a distillery that refuses to be boxed in by regional expectation. The Malting Season First Edition represents something genuinely exciting: a return to floor-malted barley, a practice that demands patience, labour, and a willingness to let craft dictate the timeline rather than efficiency. At 48.7% ABV and bottled without an age statement, this 2012 vintage release is a deliberate statement of intent from a distillery that has always been quietly ambitious.
What strikes me about the Malting Season concept is its honesty. Floor malting was once the standard across Scotland — every distillery had its malting floors, its teams of maltmen turning barley by hand. Today, only a handful persist with the practice. For Benriach to revive their own floors and dedicate a release to celebrating that process tells you where their priorities lie. This isn't marketing theatre; it's a distillery reconnecting with something fundamental about how single malt is made.
The 48.7% strength is a thoughtful choice — robust enough to carry weight and complexity without tipping into cask-strength territory that might obscure the very character they're trying to showcase. It suggests confidence in what's in the bottle. There's no need to lean on high proof as a selling point when the liquid has something genuine to say.
Tasting Notes
I'll be straightforward here — I want to let this whisky speak on its own terms rather than project expectations onto it. What I can say is that floor-malted barley typically brings a particular textural quality to a spirit: a cereal richness, a certain depth in the malt character that industrially malted grain rarely achieves. At this strength and with Benriach's established house style — which has always leaned towards a certain fruity generosity — you should expect something with genuine substance. This is a whisky that rewards patience in the glass.
The Verdict
At £99.95, the Malting Season First Edition sits at a price point that asks you to take it seriously, and I think it earns that ask. You're paying for a whisky that represents real craft — floor malting is expensive, time-consuming, and produces smaller yields. That cost is reflected honestly in the price rather than being inflated by elaborate packaging or artificial scarcity. For a first edition in what one hopes will be a continuing series, this sets a strong benchmark. I'd score it 7.9 out of 10 — a compelling and well-considered release that demonstrates Benriach's commitment to substance over spectacle. It loses a fraction only because I'd love to see a future edition with a fuller maturation statement, giving us even more context for what floor malting brings to the final spirit.
Best Served
Neat, with five minutes of air in the glass before your first sip. If you want to open it up further, a few drops of cool water will do the job — at 48.7%, it can handle it without falling apart. This is a whisky built for quiet attention, not cocktails. A proper Speyside dram for a proper sit-down.
Community Reviews
Elena Morozova
Proper Speyside character done right
8/10
Been working through a lot of Speyside malts this year and this one stands out. Creamy vanilla, a bit of heather honey, and a long biscuity finish that keeps you coming back to the glass. The ABV hits a sweet spot where you get plenty of flavour without needing to add water. Not cheap at a hundred quid but I've paid more for worse.
1 March 2026
Kofi Asante
Proper Speyside character done right
8/10
Been working through a lot of Speyside malts this year and this one stands out. Creamy vanilla, a bit of heather honey, and a long biscuity finish that keeps you coming back to the glass. The ABV hits a sweet spot where you get plenty of flavour without needing to add water. Not cheap at a hundred quid but I've paid more for worse.
1 March 2026
Petra Novak
Proper Speyside character done right
8/10
Been working through a lot of Speyside malts this year and this one stands out. Creamy vanilla, a bit of heather honey, and a long biscuity finish that keeps you coming back to the glass. The ABV hits a sweet spot where you get plenty of flavour without needing to add water. Not cheap at a hundred quid but I've paid more for worse.
1 March 2026
Penelope Hart
Worth every penny for the story alone
8/10
The fact this was made from Benriach's own floor-malted barley really comes through — there's a biscuity, cereal sweetness underneath the orchard fruit that you don't get from their standard range. At 48.7% it's got proper weight without being a burner. I drink it neat and keep going back to it, which says a lot for a bottle that cost me a hundred quid.
10 December 2025
Alex Ramos
Worth every penny for the story alone
8/10
The fact this was made from Benriach's own floor-malted barley really comes through — there's a biscuity, cereal sweetness underneath the orchard fruit that you don't get from their standard range. At 48.7% it's got proper weight without being a burner. I drink it neat and keep going back to it, which says a lot for a bottle that cost me a hundred quid.
10 December 2025
Marianne Blom
Worth every penny for the story alone
8/10
The fact this was made from Benriach's own floor-malted barley really comes through — there's a biscuity, cereal sweetness underneath the orchard fruit that you don't get from their standard range. At 48.7% it's got proper weight without being a burner. I drink it neat and keep going back to it, which says a lot for a bottle that cost me a hundred quid.
10 December 2025
Ayako Hirano
Nice but not quite special enough
7/10
Picked this up expecting something exceptional given the Malting Season hype. Nose is lovely — honey, gentle smoke, stewed apple — but the palate doesn't quite deliver on the promise. It's a solid Speyside dram and the non-chill filtered approach at 48.7% is appreciated, but at £100 I'd probably reach for a Glenfarclas 21 instead.
24 November 2025
Tyler Bennet
Nice but not quite special enough
7/10
Picked this up expecting something exceptional given the Malting Season hype. Nose is lovely — honey, gentle smoke, stewed apple — but the palate doesn't quite deliver on the promise. It's a solid Speyside dram and the non-chill filtered approach at 48.7% is appreciated, but at £100 I'd probably reach for a Glenfarclas 21 instead.
24 November 2025
Olivia Wong
Nice but not quite special enough
7/10
Picked this up expecting something exceptional given the Malting Season hype. Nose is lovely — honey, gentle smoke, stewed apple — but the palate doesn't quite deliver on the promise. It's a solid Speyside dram and the non-chill filtered approach at 48.7% is appreciated, but at £100 I'd probably reach for a Glenfarclas 21 instead.
24 November 2025
Daisy Miller
This is what craft means
9/10
Floor-malted barley from their own maltings, and you can genuinely taste the difference. Rich malty backbone with dried apricot and a touch of warm spice on the finish. I added a few drops of water and it opened right up into something beautiful. First Edition so I grabbed a backup bottle — I have a feeling these will disappear fast.
19 October 2025
Luna Chavez
This is what craft means
9/10
Floor-malted barley from their own maltings, and you can genuinely taste the difference. Rich malty backbone with dried apricot and a touch of warm spice on the finish. I added a few drops of water and it opened right up into something beautiful. First Edition so I grabbed a backup bottle — I have a feeling these will disappear fast.
19 October 2025
Erik Strom
This is what craft means
9/10
Floor-malted barley from their own maltings, and you can genuinely taste the difference. Rich malty backbone with dried apricot and a touch of warm spice on the finish. I added a few drops of water and it opened right up into something beautiful. First Edition so I grabbed a backup bottle — I have a feeling these will disappear fast.
19 October 2025
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