Ben Nevis 27 Years Old 1990 Cask #5 (Le Gus’t)

Bottled by Le Gus't in 2018 as a 27 year old single cask release drawn from cask 5 of 1990 vintage Ben Nevis with 736 bottles distributed to the French market at high cask strength of 58.9%. Le Gus't is a French independent bottling project focused on hand selected single cask Scotch releases at natural strength.

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 a single Oloroso sherry and Port pipe cask for 27 years of on site maturation.

Patient cask interaction across more than two decades drove layered fortified wine character. The Oloroso stage built European oak ellagitannins and gallic acid for dried walnut and grip, alongside oxidative aldehydes driving nutty rancio. The Port stage added Portuguese variety tannins and anthocyanin pigments for figs, plum, and cocoa. Integrated with Ben Nevis's heavy, oily Western Highland character at 58.9%.