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A what tub?

A Scot on Scotch reviews Wormtub Single Malt Scotch Whisky…

Wormtub is a whisky from Atom Brands, sister company to online retailer, Master of Malt. It’s designed to celebrate the wormtub method of condensation, an old-fashioned yet rewarding technique in the distillation process.

A wormtub is a traditional way of condensing spirit vapour into liquid form. It is, in essence, a long copper tube, twisted into a coil and submerged in a vat of cold water. Inside the pot still, alcohol rises as a vapour and ascends the neck, before passing into the lyne arm and entering the copper tube, or worm. The cold water chills the copper and, on contact with the cold metal, the hot vapour condenses back to liquid and flows from the end of the tube.

Most distilleries use shell and tube condensers nowadays. These are large cylinders, inside which are dozens of copper pipes. Like the wormtub, cold water cools the metalwork and the hot vapour condenses upon contact. Shell and tube condensers significantly increase the amount of time the spirit vapour spends in contact with copper and produces a lighter, cleaner spirit.

Wormtubs, with less copper contact, tend to produce a spirit with more body and often, with a distinctive meaty note. There are only a few distilleries that continue to utilise wormtubs, including: Ballindaloch, Balmenach, Benrinnes, Cragganmore, Craigellachie, Dalwhinnie, Glen Elgin, Knockdhu, Mortlach, Speyburn, Talisker, Glenkinchie, and Ardnahoe…

Wormtubs may have faded from fashion but those that use them, swear by them. To modernise would be to rip the guts from their spirit. That’s something I really appreciate. It would be boring if every distillery produced in the same way and it’s great to see some stick by traditional methods and the small quirks that make each spirit unique.

Wormtub 10 Year Old Review

Wormtub is a Speyside single malt (distillery undisclosed) that has been aged for 10 years and finished in sherry casks. It’s bottled at a natural colour and a cask strength of 56.1%

Tasting notes: What a nose. It instantly offers you everything you’d expect from a big old sherry bomb with full-on dried fruits, tobacco leaves, leather and dark chocolate on the nose. The palate follows a similar theme, arriving in a burst of raisins, sultanas and maple syrup but transitions to dark chocolate, nutmeg and clove and then finishes in dry, sherry-soaked oak. Water releases caramel, honey and a touch of pepper.

Thoughts: For a while there, I was absolutely fed up with overly sherried whisky and found myself chasing drams that offered more of a balance between spirit and oak. This is definitely not one of those – but I’m really enjoying it anyway. It’s got body, character and massive, massive flavour. Although, I’m not sure if it really showcases the wormtub very well, because you can’t really taste an awful lot of the spirit underneath all that fortified wine. If you really want to show off the impact of a specific part of the production process, a light touch of oak is the way to go. That said, the wormtub will be a serious contributor to the spirit’s muscle and its ability to carry the cask onslaught.

I can’t believe the sherry casks were only a finish because they’ve really taken hold. Sure, it might be nise to see a bit more balance but when you’re in the mood, there’s nothing quite like a big, daft sherry bomb.

Price: £50. It’s a single malt, it’s bottled at cask strength, it carries an age statement, and it’s a full-on sherry finish – at an accessible price point. big thumbs up from me.

For more about Wormtub visit here

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