Whisky Forum - Ben Bracken 12 Y.O Malt from Lidl is Tamnavulin 12 Y.O Malt

Ross

Ben Bracken 12 year old speyside single malt is available from Lidl supermarket for only Â£10.99

After a bit of searching in google I found out that Ben Bracken is indeed a 12 year old Speyside malt, called Tamnavulin. Tamnavulin distillery closed down about 5 years ago and Whyte & Mackay Ltd the former owners of Tamnavulin sold a load of casks of Tamnavulin to Lidl supermarket and they now sell it under the name "Ben Bracken".

If you like malts such as Glen Deveron, Glenlivet, Tormore or Glen Ord then you will probably like this.

Cheers

Ross

Danny · Member Joined: 06 May 2006 Posts: 11 Location: Scotland

Cheers Ross

I have never been in my local Lidl, but i think i will be paying it a visit this week.

Guest · Posted: Sat Sep 16, 2006 2:27 am Post subject:

Thanks for the heads up on this whisky.

Lidl still have plenty of it but it is Â£12.99 now but still a bargain considering whats in the bottle.

Cheers

Danny

paulmorris7777 · New Member Joined: 19 Nov 2008 Posts: 2

Is now Â£15.58 a bottle at Lidl.

mikecharles · New Member Joined: 09 Oct 2010 Posts: 3

Just back from a resupply foray to Lidl and there was only one Ben Bracken Speyside available, but other bottles of 12 YO"pure" malt also labelled Ben Bracken, but darker in colourWe .bought one of each @ Â£15.99 each. I'll post again after comparison tasting, but wondering if anyone else has come across this and had any further information.

McKay · Posted: Sat Oct 09, 2010 7:15 pm Post subject:

i tried the Lidl Ben Bracken probably around the time of the first post in this thread about 3 1/2 years ago, so i would be interested in your thoughts on it now. Supermarkets bottlings often change as it depends where they source the whisky so there is a a good chance this has changed.

Strange that they have a bottle with a "Pure Malt" label as i thought they had rules stopping the use of this as it is not very clear as to what is in the bottle. Pure Malt normally means a vatted malt or as they now say blended malt (a blend of single malts from different distilleries) so this will be different from the original Ben Bracken single malt.

mikecharles · New Member Joined: 09 Oct 2010 Posts: 3

Thanks McKay.

The Speyside Ben Bracken has been consistent in taste since we first tried it a couple of years ago. The "pure" malt is much darker in colour and, as yet, remains untasted. I did raise an enquiry with Lidl customer service about this and will post any response received here.

Cheers, Mike

mikecharles · New Member Joined: 09 Oct 2010 Posts: 3

Lidl customer service advised that the Ben Bracken 12 YO "Pure" malt is complementary to the Single Malt Speyside so both products should be available.

Slainte, Mike

Gregor · Master Of Malts Joined: 25 Apr 2008 Posts: 798

I would assume the "Pure Malt" means it is a blend of malts from different distilleries so if Ben Bracken was originally Tamnavulin the Pure Malt may be totally different depending on how much Ben Bracken/Tamnavulin is in the mix. The darker colour does sound like a bit of the old e150 caramel colouring is in the pure malt also.

bobmac · Posted: Sun Oct 02, 2011 1:05 pm Post subject: Ben Bracken

Have tasted the above whisky for the first time. Never heard of it until I got a bottle as a present a few days ago Very impressed with it. I think we have a Lidl in Dumfries.

bobmac

malx · New Member Joined: 29 Feb 2012 Posts: 2

Greetings etc...
I shop at Lidl due to Poverty and Proximity, and have been enjoying "Ben Bracken" for a couple of years. Not sure what colour it's supposed to be, but it's a glorious bright gold in my Edwardian ship's decanter, and tastes warm, generous and eager; like a Macallan without the prejudicial casking.
I love it to bits, and try to keep the decanter charged when I can afford to.

If indeed the Tamnavulin story is true it just goes to show how VITAL it is that we attempt to try to strive to ensure that NO more Distilleries go the way of all flesh.
If this 'Ben Bracken' is the product of a defunct Distillery, then the world is a lesser place, and I regret that. Let's hope Distilleries can weather the current financial storm and survive to repel boarders like Japanese and (presumably soon??) Chinese Whisky...

I'm delighted for Danny and Ross who seem to have bought B B for Â£10.99 a bottle in 2006. (My jealousy is best not viewed in public...) Today you need Â£16.99 to enter this particular golden gate to heaven, but imho is well worth the money.
Mine is labelled as 40% so I don't know what they've been doing to it in the last decade or so, but I'd certainly recommend it nevertheless. (Certainly there is no chlorine in it!)

Nice to read this Forum. Sorry if I don't become a regular, but limited funds restrict (water of) life experience.

malx · New Member Joined: 29 Feb 2012 Posts: 2

Sandy Thomson · New Member Joined: 22 Jan 2014 Posts: 1

Malx says "For the record, the address of the producer is given as: Clydesdale Scotch Whisky Co. Glasgow G2 5RG"...
I was given a bottle today - for printing off song sheets ready for Burns Night - and the Name is now 'Wallace & Young Distillers Co, Glasgow, Scotland. G2 2PQ'.
I admit I prefer the west coast Malts to Speyside, but as an aperitif, and free, it should be OK.

And yes, it's still from Lidl's... In west Cornwall - They must have bought a lot of stock from Tamnavulin ?
The colour seems to be somewhere between 'Amontillado Sherry' and 'Deep Copper' - using the Whiskey Magazine's Colour Bar Chart. (0.9 - 1.0).
On the inside of the back label, there's an etching of the Distillery in a valley, with a horse and dray on the winding road. The front 'label' is lettering printed directly onto the glass, the bottle itself has 'Single Malt' and 'Ben Bracken' in relief on the glass moulding. 70cl, 40%vol.