A Scot on Scotch

WHISKY REVIEWS, NEWS, HISTORY & FOLKLORE

A member of the SMWS

I recently renewed my membership in the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) and took the option to include a “mystery bottle” in the package. It seemed a helluva deal. Annual membership normally costs £75. Renewal with a mystery bottle was £90. That’s a bottle of a single cask, single malt for £15. I’m not one to pass up such an opportunity and was delighted when Cask No 93.209 dropped through my door – a whisky from Glen Scotia, no less.

Many have asked me over the years if I would recommend the SMWS and I’ve never hesitated to say yes but I must admit that I found myself wondering recently if I would be so eager to renew if it weren’t for the member’s bar in Bath St in Glasgow. It’s an interesting thought. I was a member before the bar came along but my enthusiasm seems to have cooled of late. The only bottles I’ve bought in the last 12 months were renewal bottles, or those that have lived in my keep in Bath St.

I see some comments on social media claiming that there’s been a decrease in the quality of the Society’s output but I’m not sure the drams I’ve encountered back that up. To me, quality still seems quite high, across the board. Perhaps there’s a lack of big-name distilleries, but that’s hardly a problem unique to the SMWS.

Back when Pip Hills set out on his whisky adventure, cask-strength Scotch was virtually unheard of. No one understood what a single cask was and the term “independent bottler” may as well have been a different language. This is no longer the case. Whisky drinkers are informed and they know all about the plethora of independent bottlers that abound.

The modern version of the SMWS will tell you that their time in the game gives them an advantage over the competition but membership seems constantly on the rise and there’s only so far a single cask can go. That means access to the whisky isn’t always as easy as I’d like. Would I keep paying a membership fee if I found myself missing out on bottles, more often than not? I’m not sure I would. Not when there are so many other independent bottlers releasing great stuff.

The member’s rooms are where the SMWS continues to stand out. That’s what separates it from the other bottlers. The low lighting and warm welcome of Bath St are, for me, the true benefits of being a member. That’s what makes the annual renewal worth it. Though a £15 Glen Scotia certainly helps.

SMWS Cask No 93.209 “A Musing Moment”

The whisky is a single cask (just 211 bottles available) distilled on 16th September 2014. It was matured in a first-fill ex-bourbon barrel and bottled at 58.5% abv.

Tasting notes: Coastal nose with brine, seaweed, seashells. It’s a wee bit meaty. Surf & turf! There’s also an oily, funky side. Oily smoke and diesel fumes. Caramelised ham. Pepper and gingerbread with cinnamon and honey. On the palate, it starts malty and creamy before introducing some sweetness in the form of honey. That’s followed by some woody spice as the bourbon influence makes itself known. There’s some juicy oak and dank, dirty peat smoke in the finish.

Thoughts: There’s an oily, almost industrial character that shows through in this dram, both in nose and palate. It’s a steampunk malt, full of coal fire smoke and diesel fumes but you can throw in some maritime bluster for seasoning, then sweeten it with bourbon vanilla and honey to make it more approachable. There’s also a lack of heat with the high abv that softens the whisky’s darker tones. A great example of the grittier side of Glen Scotia (and Campbeltown) that’s still very, very drinkable.

Price: £65.50 at original price. A ridiculous bargain as the mystery malt package.

For more about the Scotch Malt Whisky Society visit here

About A Scot on Scotch

Contact