Ben Nevis 15yo 1996/2011 (55.4%, C of Q, C#911, 231 Bts., HHD) 

A private bottling of a cask with a history of being embroiled in a massive fraud in the UK, the owners had thought they had lost it in the ensuing legal wrangling. However all was well in the end; the cask was quietly maturing in the Ben Nevis warehouses along, their ownership of the cask never in question. Now it’s been safely bottled for the Companions of the Quaich to enjoy. So with the legalities safely behind it on the undiluted nose there is some good creaminess with some small showing of malt but there is a very good showing of vanilla creams with a hint of mocha. Delicious! With water the creaminess evolves and reveals some very pleasant malt, some good notes from the oak (spiciness & unlit cured tobacco) and some sweet citrus (slightly over ripe orange perhaps). The undiluted taste is solid and very active, some good cask influence along with the malt and a little of the sweetness in the back ground but all in all quite excellent and very drinkable. Luscious. Hints of root beer in there some where. With water a some what tamed dram and perhaps a little less fun but still all the solid bullet points as previously described are present. The finish is bang on with the nose and the taste with good sweet malt and some tobacco, some light fruit and some dried liquorice root. 

Ben Nevis at its best but a departure from the official bottlings. 

$85 

Score 90 points