Septembers Fabulous Five!
On the last evening of September I had the pleasure in taking part in the latest online ‘Gathering’ of The SMWS!
Hosting for the event was ably carried out by Brand Ambassador John McCheyne and Society Ambassador Dean Marinello and they were also joined by Ambassadors Jutta Unterguggenberger from Austria, Klaus Bitschnau from Sweden and Monique Tenkortenaar from Benelux.
They guideed us through five special drams, bottled exclusively for The Gathering and selected by Society members.
Sadly, the UK allocation of these drams has now gone (they were used to make-up the Tasting Kits!)
But The SMWS ‘Gathering’ Tasting Packs Are Still Available Priced At £35.00!
For full bottles you will have to try their EU site – be quick though!.
The Drams Sampled on the night were:
Cask No. 18.46 – Bandyportflj
Cask No. 39.251 – A sweet tongue twister
Cask No. 68.95 – A Negroni riff
Cask No. 73.144 – Un coin(g) de nature
Cask No. 112.109 – Das rennende Schaf am Strand
So, what did I think? Here are my tasting notes …
Tasting Notes – Cask No. 73.144 – Un coin(g) de nature
Cask Type: 1st. fill ex-bourbon barrel
11 years old
62.5% ABV
Distillery: Aultmore
 Nose: Sugar cane sweetness with a little tropical fruit with a predominant pineapple. I also picked up caramel and toffee. Palate: Creamy, sugar cane sweetness, very fresh and fruity! Finish: Very punchy spice with some dryness at the end but the toffee has a long reach! |
| Sadly, Not available to buy – But – You Can See All That The SMWS Has To Offer! |
Tasting Notes – Cask No. 39.251 – A sweet tongue twister
Cask Type: 2nd. fill ex-bourbon barrel
11 years old
59% ABV
Distillery: Linkwood
 Nose: Creamy vanilla and quite woody with additional orchard fruits and a little toffee. Palate: Deep sugary sweetness with bursting fruits, liquorice and caramel. Finish: Oaky and dry with very warming peppery spice to complete the experience! |
| Sadly, Not available to buy – But – You Can See All That The SMWS Has To Offer! |
Tasting Notes – Cask No. 18.46 – Bandyportflj
Cask Type: 1st. fill ex-oloroso hogshead
13 years old
58.6% ABV
Distillery: Inchgower
 Nose: Sherried and porty with vanilla and apple toffee – very inviting indeed! Palate: Sweet dried fruits with lovely sherry flavours, shades of Christmas flavours including toffee and chocolate. Finish: Very smooth with a little warming glow coming through. Perfect to cosy up by the fire with! |
| Sadly, Not available to buy – But – You Can See All That The SMWS Has To Offer! |
Tasting Notes – Cask No. 68.95 – A Negroni riff
Cask Type: 1st. fill ex-oloroso hogshead
13 years old
58.1% ABV
Distillery: Blair Athol
 Nose: Rich portiness with toffee and hints of apples toffee and fudge. Palate: Very creamy, luscious mouthfeel bursting with apples, toffee, dried fruits and port. Finish: Nice n’ spicy and the the rich fruits are very compelling to the taste buds – a gorgeous whisky! |
| Sadly, Not available to buy – But – You Can See All That The SMWS Has To Offer! |
Tasting Notes – Cask No. 112.109 – Das rennende Schaf am Strand
Cask Type: Refill ex-bourbon hogshead
15 years old
51.5% ABV
Distillery: Inchmurrin (Loch Lomond Distillery)
 Nose: Liquid smoke and fruity peat – very savoury – a fantastic nose! Some caramel comes along a while later … Palate: Sugary sweet, smokey and peaty all in equal measures! Finish: All of the above with growing antiseptic flavours with warming spice accompanying for good measure. An excellent starter if you are new to peat drams and ably showing that there’s nothing to be scared of in a peat whisky! |
| Sadly, Not available to buy – But – You Can See All That The SMWS Has To Offer! |
On the night I most enjoyed “18.46 – Bandyportflj” & “68.95 – A Negroni riff” : It’s always SO hard to choose between SMWS drams as they are exceptional but these really stood out. Deep, rich, fruity and spicy flavours which are perfect for Autumn and the coming Christmas season!
Many thanks to SMWS (@SMWSUK) for such an enjoyable evening and for sending the samples!
About The SMWS
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society is a club unlike any other.
As well as being a place to connect with other like-minded whisky lovers, they are also internationally renowned for their mission: “to provide our members with an adventurous and fun journey of discovery of the world’s widest collection of single cask whiskies.”
Conceptualised in the late 70’s and established in 1983, the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, now 35 years old, has branches and partners bars in 19 countries globally. The Society has a selection of over 500 casks every year, each cask yielding a few hundred or less whisky bottles which are unique to that cask.
Rather than name their Whiskies after the distillery, the Society has a coding system. The Society also creates fantastic tasting notes summaries for their Whiskies and other bottles. The whiskies are straight from the cask single malt, undiluted, without chill-filtration or colouring at cask strength.
More recently the Society has been named Independent Bottler of the Year in Whisky Magazine’s prestigious Independent Bottlers’ Challenge (IBC) competition.
Related posts:
Grab Your Tasting Packs – It’s The SMWS April Virtual Tasting!
Sampling “Dram o’ clock” (Cask No: 9.222) – An SMWS Whisky That’s A Tasty, Gentle Giant Of A Dram!
Sampling The SMWS Advent Calendar – Whisky Tasting That Really Made It “Christmas Every Day!”
Sampling The SMWS ‘Maverick’ 40th Anniversary Bottling – An Unorthodox Dram – For Every Person!
Powered by YARPP.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.