Éste mes en Unfiltered:
SMWS at 40 – Code breakers: What does 1.9.8.3 mean to The Scotch Malt Whisky Society? It means four decades of outstanding single cask whisky, a curious coding system and the release of a special collection of four bottles to celebrate our 40th anniversary.
Vaults Collection – Classic cocktail: When we first read the Tasting Notes for Vaults Collection Cask No. 70.48: Espresso Romano, we were immediately transported to the Amalfi coast. Inspired by the Tasting Panel’s notes, we decided to go for a literal interpretation, pairing an Espresso Romano with the Vaults Collection whisky of the same name. Then we took it a step further. With June being all about shaking things up, what better time to show off this new Vaults Collection release than in a summer cocktail?
More than a number: Whisky is a matter of great ingredients, know-how and patience. But is it only worth bottling after a certain age? That’s a question worth keeping in mind, particularly in a world where there seems to be a race to bottle the oldest whiskies possible, retailing for eye-watering prices. Should we prize maturity above all else? The Society’s Julien Willems begs to differ.
A pairing with legs: Going against the grain is nothing new to The Scotch Malt Whisky Society and on our 40th anniversary we’re celebrating four decades of doing things differently. With that in mind, Society writer Duncan Gorman decided to set up a tasting with a distinctly maverick flavour – with three adventurous members roped in to put it to the test.
SMWS at 40 – Expressing the inexpressible: Making sense of flavour has been a challenge that the Society’s Tasting Panel has been grappling with since 1983, when it started to write tasting notes unlike anything that had been seen in the whisky world at that point. Tasting Panel chair Kami Newton reflects on describing the indescribable – and letting the imagination run wild.
All about armagnac: We might be a whisky club first and foremost, but that doesn’t preclude us from searching out the very best bottlings of other spirits for our curious members. A recent visit to The Vaults by Denis Lesgourges from the Chateau de Laubade house was a timely reminder of the beauty of armagnac, France’s oldest eau-de-vie and a drink that every whisky lover should explore. Here’s everything you need to know about the wonderful world of armagnac.
Distillery profile – Kythe: A new distillery in Perthshire plans to recreate the spirit of the 1960s, with two-week fermentations, a wood-fired wash still and worm tub condensers. Unfiltered editor Richard Goslan caught up with co-founders Angus MacRaild and Jonny McMillan to find out more about Kythe distillery.
The sound of Glen Scotia: How do you capture the sense of sound in a distillery and its location – and then incorporate that into a song? That’s what the team at Glen Scotia set out to do, with a whisky and music collaboration in its Campbeltown home, as Richard Goslan reports.
Whisky craft: Furniture maker Richard England has found inspiration in a whisky glass to create drinks cabinets to dream about, as Duncan Gorman found out.
Member profile – Kevin Meronuk: From a chance encounter with a Society bottling, Kevin Meronuk has gone the extra mile from his home in British Columbia to experience monthly Outturn tastings in Vancouver as well as trips to every one of our Members’ Rooms in the UK.
Share a dram with… Tim Foster, SMWS European Business Development Manager
