Scotch Malt Whisky Society 105.15

$179.99

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

TONIC TO LIFT THE SPIRITS

After 28 years in a first fill sherry hogshead this whisky has retained its strength nicely at 55.4%. 

Panel's Tasting Note: "Clean, fresh and simple on the nose, with saddle soap and leather polish tostart, then dentists' mouthwash, pine needles and tonic water, with 'Daim Bar' (praline covered with chocolate) after a while. Not as sweet a taste as expected; cooling mint and liquorice; slightly salty, but with chocolate in the aftertaste. The cooling effect becomes more pronounced with water – minty and mentholated ('Hoola-Hoola Ice Powder', for those who have been to Thailand); caramel, tobacco and nasturtiums. Now much sweeter to taste, though still lightly mouth-cooling, with dark chocolate in the finish. The distillery, built in the 1950s, was designed by a Past resident of the Royal Academy."

Drinking Tip: "A chill-out dram after dangerous sports."

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 53.158

$124.19

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

COAL TAR MEETS PORK SAUSAGE

This Ieach is 58.6% after 15 years in a Refill Hogshead cask. 

Panel's Tasting Note: "Mild and clean, with Coal Tar soap and Calamine Lotion; pine cones and needles; crepe bandage, Elastoplast, plaster cast; a suggestion of pork and rosemary sausages. The taste at this stage is very sweet, salty and smoky, with peppermint and Lapsang Suchong tea. Water reduces the aroma and makes it more floral, less clean, more medicinal (antiseptic cream), less meaty, and now with a pickled ginger note. A soft mouth-feel; not quite as sweet as formerly, and slightly less smoky. Some noted a trace of pickled herring. A polite and subtle expression of the make from Islay's largest distillery, at Port Askaig.

Drinking Tip: "Preparing the barbeque."

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 44.51

$146.69

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

MAKING CANDELS IN THE ART ROOM

This 22 year old has been bottled at 53.7% after maturing in a refill hoggy.

Panel's Tasting Note: "Warm, dripping candlewax, maybe making candles by dipping wicks. Then the aroma quickly passes through leather cream, floor polish and furniture polish to crayons - a school art room - before revealing a scented dimension (bog myrtle?). We were all reminded of (happy) schooldays. At natural strength it tastes like it smells, with the addition of toasted tea-cake. A splash of water freshens and raises more fragrance – bog myrtle, sage, lemon grass and lemon peel – but the waxiness remains. Now the taste is sweet, smooth and waxy, with some spicy/herbal notes, light eucalyptus and scented sandalwood or cedar wood. Sir Peter Mackie once owned this distillery."

Drinking Tip: "A school reunion - with good friends."

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 125.59

$97.19

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

SPUN SUGAR ON POLISHED WOOD

A ten year old Northern Highlander at 59.9% after maturing in 2nd Fill Sherry Butt.

Panel's Tasting Note: ÈThe complex, intriguing nose had various facets – spun sugar and Crunchie bar sweetness; lavender and polished wood; tar, treacle toffees and black tea; rich Morello cherries, dates and walnuts; finally, pleasant maple, vanilla and pumpkin spice. The unreduced palate had parma violets and fizzers, slight mintyness and lots of muscovado, treacle, burnt sugar and dark toffee. The nose became even more sophisticated with water – orange oil, barley sugar, leather, sauna heat, burnt wood and caramel. The reduced palate was reasonably lively with great texture, warm spices, attractive sweet woody flavours and a wonderful afterglow. The distillery lies just outside Tain."

Drinking tip: "Ideal for autumn evenings – preparing the soul for winter."

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 25.60

$149.39

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

IN A SECRET GARDEN

This 20 year old whisky from a now closed Lowland distillery is one of just 216 bottles filled into cask at 51.1%.

Panel's Tasting Note: "An extremely fragrant nose – initial nail polish; then laurel hedges surround-ed a secret garden of roses, daisies, dandelions and blossoms. Afterwards it became sweeter and fruitier (more like a secret orchard) with peach melba, cherry lips, lemon, orange and baked pear. Fruits galore on the palate (pears and custard, kiwi, strawberry) delicate, airy, fresh and floral, though eventually some bitter green wood kicked in. Water accentuated the fruitiness of the nose – lemon Turkish delight, kumquat, mango, fruit salad chews and sherbet dib-dabs. The palate was soft and smooth with herbs, flower stems, oak and pine. From a distillery near Falkirk."

Drinking Tip: "As a prelude to romantic liaisons in a garden."

Glenmorangie Astar

$79.19

SOLD OUT! - !!!Never to return to KWM!!!

From the Distillery: "Five thousand miles away on a secluded Missouri hillside, oak perfect for the maturation of this whisky reaches straight for the heavens. Here, in the relative shade of these north-facing slopes, we hand-select oak that has grown slowly enough to create a spongier and more porous wood. Perfect for welcoming the spirit and imparting the maximum amount of flavour.The 'Astar', meaning journey in Gaelic, has certainly come a long way. But with its bright gold colour and smooth but spicy finish, we feel the journey has been more than worth it.Non chill-filtered

Tasting Notes

Aroma: Rich in toffee and crème-brulee, drizzled with fresh menthol, warm cinnamon and deep aniseed spices. Mint humbugs and a sweet honey-lemon complexity follows.

Taste: Crème-brulee with a burst of mouth-watering pineapple, poached pears and apricots, smothered with vanilla custard.

Finish: The finish is long and smooth with a lingering mix of honey and almond, coconut ice and traces of aniseed.

Signatory Bowmore 1985

$149.39

The Dalmore 1978

$692.54

Scotch Malt Whisky Society 16.31

$97.19

SOLD OUT! - Not expected to return to KWM! 

DICHOTOMY OF SWEET AND SAVOURY

Bottled after 10 years in a Refill Gourda Ex-Sherry cask.

Panel's Tasting Note: "Sweet and savoury aromas greeted the Panel – tinned fruit, cinder toffee, honeycomb, Rumtopf peaches, grapes, tomato vines, Vosene shampoo and roast pork & cranberry; although there was a slight butyric whiff. The palate was more of the same although nutty with cinnamon, slightly burnt caramel and strawberry cider with added pineapple sherbet fizz. Water introduces strawberry strudel, sandalwood church pews, rum-soaked-oranges and grease paint, while to taste it was sickly sweet with liquorice rolling papers, over-ripe plums and incense but a bitter dry finish reminiscent of peanut skins balanced it out. From Scotland's oldest distillery that is home to the Famous Grouse."

Drinking Tip: "For reflection on fruity memories."