FLAVOUR HUNTERS FESTIVAL 2023
This exclusive range of ‘Rare Releases‘ and Single Casks were produced for our Flavour Hunters Festival in May 2023.
“We have a great collection for festival season this year, a mixture of outstanding single cask bottlings complemented by seven small-batch products. Working with between five and 10 different casks in each case gave us the chance to experiment with different flavours. It also allows us to share these whiskies on a more global scale – after all, festivals are all about bringing people together and we want to be able to do that in slightly larger volumes this year. They are also all bottled at cask strength, and each one has its own ‘cask bill’ recipe – a different selection of casks that we’ve worked to put together to create something interesting and special.”
Euan Campbell, SMWS Head of Whisky Creation
Spirit Notes
A heady aroma came brimming with confectionery and baked pastry vibes. Some clear impressions of pomegranate molasses drizzled on lemon sponge cake were joined by coffee crème caramel and hints of aromatic VORS oloroso. This evolved nicely to cherries, marzipan and orange liqueurs. Water brought out notes of rum fudge, ginger cake, peppermint tea and a wonderfully deep leather and tobacco combo. The neat palate opened up with hot cross buns, a deep and satisfying spiciness, booze-soaked trifle and a smörgåsbord of fig jam, cinnamon pastries and a lovely, syrupy texture evoking runny honey and fruit compotes. With water it moved more towards dark chocolate, Turkish delight and candied walnuts, with a long, warming and citrus-tinged afterglow.
| Profile | deep, rich & dried fruits |
|---|---|
| Cask No. | 68 Rare Release |
| Cask(s) | 1st Fill Ex-Oloroso Spanish Oak Hogshead, Refill Ex-Bourbon Hogshead |
| Region | Highland |
| ABV | 53.5% |
| Age | 14 years |
| Distillation Year | 2008 |
| Outturn | 1174 bottles |
