Ben Nevis 26 Years Old 1998 Single Cask Masterpiece (MoM)

Bottled by Master of Malt in 2025 as a 26 year old release of 1998 vintage Ben Nevis with 301 bottles distributed to the European market at cask strength of 45.5%. Master of Malt is a UK based independent bottler and online retailer, focused on small batch single cask releases at natural strength alongside the Darkness finishing series.

Distilled at Ben Nevis distillery in Fort William at the foot of the highest mountain in the British Isles, founded in 1825 by John "Long John" McDonald and owned by Nikka Whisky Distilling under Asahi Group since 1989. The wash uses unpeated malted barley with soft Allt a'Mhuilinn burn water from springs on the slopes of Ben Nevis, fermented for around 48 hours with brewer's pressed yeast in eight washbacks of stainless steel and Oregon pine. Ben Nevis runs two wash and two spirit stills, the wash stills tubular with plain deep bases, the spirit stills cone shaped with deep bases, all steam heated through shell and tube condensers. The spirit was filled into rum casks for 26 years of on site maturation.

Patient cask interaction across more than two decades drove rum cask chemistry. Rum casks carry residual cane spirit esters including ethyl propanoate and ethyl octanoate, alongside brown sugar and caramel notes from extended molasses spirit aging. The combination layers tropical fruit and warm sweetness over Ben Nevis's heavy, oily Western Highland character at 45.5%.