Benromach, established in 1898, is the smallest distillery in Speyside. Yet it produces some of the finest single malt Scotch whiskies in the market—and since 2018, Red Door Highland Gin, a small-batch, handcrafted spirit made in the London Dry style.
On Thursday, December 19, join us in welcoming wine and spirits specialist Joel Caruso to West Hollywood's Bar Sopra for a complimentary tasting of three Benromach expressions—10 Year, 15 Year, and the very rare 2007 "Hermitage," plus Benromach's Red Door Gin. Then enjoy Benromach and Red Door in a menu of three Custom Cocktails courtesy master bartender Rhino Williams and support the Museum's work.
Show up anytime between 7 and 8:30 to ensure seating. LIVE MUSIC starts at 9!
The spirits tasting is FREE with RSVP!
ABOUT JOEL
Joel Caruso is the Los Angeles Market Manager for Chopin Imports. He holds a WSET Level 3 (Advanced) certification in both wine and spirits and has earned the Certified Sommelier qualification from the Court of Master Sommeliers.
Drawn to education, Caruso’s journey of professional wine and spirits has effectively intertwined his understanding of wine and spirits education, service, and relationship building into a unique and relatable form of hospitality, teaching, and sales.
He has an extensive background in restaurants and over 20 years of food and beverage experience, working in Fox Restaurant Concepts' Olive & Ivy in Scottsdale, AZ, conducting tastings, training, and cellar management in its Wine Spectator-award-winning program; Pizzeria Ortica in Costa Mesa, creating one of Orange County’s most recognized and rewarded beverage programs during his tenure, receiving several Wine Spectator Awards of Excellence for the wine program, as well as OC Weekly’s Bartender of The Year (2015) and Orange County’s Best Cocktail Program (2016).
After his 15 years in restaurants, Caruso pivoted to focus on a broader consumer base through education, marketing, and sales. In 2017, he was named US Ambassador for the Vivino Wine App and its community of over 35 million users. Across the country, he contributed wine consultation, staff education, and event representation. With this national exposure, Caruso’s expertise was featured in high-profile publications, such as Forbes and Cosmopolitan Online.
Caruso currently serves as the Los Angeles Market Manager with Chopin Imports, overseeing sales and business development in the greater Los Angeles area. He also provides education across the country to consumers and industry professionals for the products in the Chopin portfolio, including Chopin Family Reserve, Gordon & MacPhail, Benromach Speyside Scotch, and Koch el Mezcal.
When he is not enjoying wine and spirits, he is currently working towards a black belt in Kung Fu.
FEATURED POURS
Benromach Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
10 Year
15 Year
2007 "Hermitage"
Red Door Highland Gin
ABOUT BENROMACH
Today, Benromach is the smallest distillery in Speyside with a workforce of just two and a maximum capacity of a mere half million litres annually. Benromach was established in 1898, a year a great number of distilleries came into being. The distillery was built by the Benromach Distillery Company and situated to the north of Forres in Speyside.
Drawing its water from the Chapeltown springs, Benromach was one of the many Speyside distilleries designed by the renowned Charles Doig, the Elgin-based architect who was credited also for Aberlour, Dufftown and Balblair among many others. Benromach, whose name derives from the Gaelic for ‘shaggy mountain’, closed and reopened over the course of the 1930s. In 1983 it was mothballed. It was not until a decade later that the distillery was acquired from United Distillers by Gordon and MacPhail. Following the purchase, Gordon and MacPhail paraded it as a flagship distillery of the old school Speyside style. A more heavily peated malt was used, producing a fuller spirit.
Benromach was reopened officially by Prince Charles in 1998. Under Gordon & MacPhail's ownership, Benromach became the first distillery to release a Soil Association certified whisky with the 2006-released Organic. Other unique expressions have been released since; PeatSmoke, distilled from heavily peated malt at 55ppm as well as a series with the moniker Origins, aimed to draw attention to the effects of different production processes.
ABOUT RED DOOR
Made in the fabulous Benromach distillery, Red Door Gin is a small-batch, handcrafted London Dry style gin. The botanical selection was inspired by Scotland’s mountains, forests and coastal fringes, featuring the likes of bitter orange, sea buckthorn, heather and rowanberries among juniper.
Distilled in the affectionately named copper pot still, ‘Peggy’, Red Door Gin was created using the vapour-infused distilling method, which steams the neutral base spirit through a total of eight botanicals. It was bottled at 45% ABV, in a rather stylish and, appropriately, red receptacle.