Must Try

SMWSA Cask No. 125.48
Highlands, Northern Highlands
52.1% ABV
Distilled November 1998
$110
US Allocation: 150 Bottles
September 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
The nose, initially offering orange liqueur, balsa wood and old-fashioned tea chests, took some time to open; a drop of water helped us to discover the depth and complexity – caramel, Mars bar, fruit tea with honey, a mixed bag of dried fruits and nuts and Dorset Cereals muesli with maple syrup. The palate, at natural strength, had good heat in it, plus flavours of leather, wood, tea leaves and coconut, with cinder toffee, burnt sugar and honeycomb crunch. The reduced palate developed malt and candy sweetness, with pleasant warm spices in the finish. ‘Perfected’ by the sixteen men of Tain.

Drinking tip: Pretty versatile really, but not one to be rushed.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Musty black tea like what’s left in a Tetley box after all the bags are gone. Dark orange notes and with a little water honey and wildflowers come out.
Palate: Caramel, British Mars bars, and toffee. Water brings out more orange notes and makes the sweetness more honey than toffee/caramel.
Finish: The finish without water is hot and a little musty. With water it’s of medium length and lightly peppery.
Comments: This is not like other Glenmorangies that I’ve tried but they spend so much time with wood finishes that it’s hard to say. This is a very nice express that I highly recommend trying.
Rating: Must Try

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

SMWSA Cask No. 2.81
Highlands, Speyside (Livet)
59.9% ABV
Distilled April 1996
$120
US Allocation: 210 Bottles
September 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
Rich and heady aromas of butterscotch, molasses adn rum soaked raisins together with creme brulee, orange oil, geraniums and a greenhouse on a warm day. Toffee sweetness was balance by balsamic and a trace of struck matches. The taste was hot, there was liquorice, black tea tannins, toffee and black pepper. Water improved it offering smooth buttery toffee, tobacco and balsamic. The palate was still tannic (like chewing sticks) with brown sauce bitterness but also sweet with vanilla, butterscotch and caramel. This Speyside distillery is close to the famous pack horse bridge.

Drinking tip: A pudding dram.

What Richard Says:
Nose: This one noses somewhere between a Kentucky rye bourbon and a robust California Cabernet. Water brings out more of the sherry.
Palate: Rich, dark, and chewy like a plum and raspberry Starburst candy. Water lightens the load again toward pronounced sherry notes.
Finish: The finish is a little hot out of the barrel with a heavy dry oak influence. Water mellows the dry oak nicely and leave a pleasant liquorice flavor.
Comments: In reviewing the provided tasting notes after I did my tasting I zeroed in on “molasses” and “balsamic” vinegar. Those are great descriptors that permeate the nose and palate. However, they were foreign to me until pointed out because they are unusual for me to find in a scotch. This is a very rich thick dram that is fun to explore. Aberlour maybe?
Rating: Must Try

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

SMWSA Cask No. 4.153
Highlands, Orkney
58.6% ABV
Distilled October 1999
$100
US Allocation: 150 Bottles
Late August 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
Plenty to keep you occupied – smoked bacon, Golden Crunch Creams, Fry’s chocolate cream, ylang ylang, cherry liqueur, coal scuttles, Eton Mess, glossy magazines, and clean wood smoke. On the palate this multifariousness had become solventy – petrol, lighter fluid, kerosene – but was thick and mouth coating with ginger beer and lime pickle. Water drew forth pink grapefruit, orange, peardrops, Swarfega, coal tar soap, tinned fruit salad, faraway creosote and haggis spices. It had softened but still with a hint of petrol to taste, Lily of the Valley talcum powder and smoke (as if from a really large drawing room fire). From Orkney’s premier distillery.

Drinking tip: Enjoy while on a camping trip.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Delicate and slightly herbal with a wisp of sherry. Water opens it up to heater, honeysuckle, fresh cut grass, and a hint of smoke.
Palate: Rich, creamy, sweet milk chocolate covered caramels. Mouth coating. With water the sweetness is more honeysuckle with a little wheat grass.
Finish: The palate quickly fades to wood smoke, barrel char and bitter high cacao chocolate. Water leaves the finish extra dry and chalky.
Comments: This is a journey in a glass. The nose, palate, and finish all stand apart giving no hints of the others, each it’s own island of sensation. You don’t just drink this one, you experience it. Is there ever really a bad Highland Park dram?
Rating: Must Try

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.

SMWSA Cask No. 3.182
Islay, Loch Indaal
46.4% ABV
Distilled August 1990
$145
US Allocation: 60 Bottles
Early August 2012 Outturn Release

What the SMWSA Says:
We found quite a bit of fruit on the nose – tinned pears, passion fruit and ‘someone peeling tangerines in the a recently painted hospital’ – in addition we enjoyed lavender, orange blossoms, patchouli, burnt paper, smoky bacon and well-kept stables – quite complex all in all. The palate had Elastoplasts and gauze bandages, star anise, walnut fudge, honeysuckle, nutty tobacco and baklava. Water brought freesias and parma violets, creosote and peat fires to the nose, while the palate became sweeter, developing slightly burnt treacle tart, sugar cane and dark chocolate coated marzipan with some coconut to finish. The distillery was built in 1779.

Drinking tip: A good barbeque or camp fire dram.

What Richard Says:
Nose: Ooooh creamy smokey yummy. Smoked bacon and ripe orchard fruits. I don’t like what water does to the nose on this one. It makes it a little too vegetal.
Palate: Sweet and spicy at first. Lots of honey. The spice is driving me nuts. I know I’ve had it before. It’s hot and peppery like some kind of southwestern Mex-fusion. Water makes it much more floral and peaty.
Finish: The finish plays out slow to a medium length. That honey sweetness lingers and slowly fades into the ember smoke of a camp fire the morning after.
Comments: After seeing the depth of notes the SMWSA puts out I’m a little intimidated. Well, we’ll see how it goes. 😉 [cough]Bowmore[cough] Honestly, assuming I’m correct about the distillery, this is one of the best glasses of malt from there that I’ve ever had. Very nice. This is a busy whisky with lots going on but you don’t get lost in the mix. It all plays very nicely together. Easily a must try dram.
Rating: Must Try

Review sample provided courtesy of the SMWSA and is available to society members through their website or 800.990.1991.