Cask No. 8.44
TOUCHED BY A BEAR'S PAW
€80.00
PROFILE Spicy & Dry REGION Speyside AGE 8 years ABV 59.7% CASK TYPE 1st fill ex-oloroso butt
The inviting nose conjured a melange of aromas – candied orange slices, cherries dipped in chocolate, walnut bread, ginger-infused jaffa cakes and, always in the background, a hot toddy with brandy. It was “very potent”, like a bone-dry martini where the glass gets rinsed with vermouth and then discarded. In the aftertaste we sipped a rich and highly caffeinated Turkish coffee spiced with cardamom.
Following the liberal addition of water, we imagined chopping the firewood for that night's stay in our log cabin. Resting, we sat on the pine cone-covered forest floor and enjoyed sourdough pumpernickel bread and bärentatzen: a soft, spicy chocolate cookie in the shape of a bear’s paw.
Cask No. 68.125
CONKERS IN A BONFIRE
€96.00
PROFILE Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits REGION Highland AGE 12 years ABV 57.3% CASK TYPE 1st fill ex-PX hogshead
We all went bonkers with conkers as we threw them into a bonfire and listened to the explosive noise that sounded like a firework display. Sweet and juicy on the palate, our freshly squeezed pineapple was enriched with some sugar cane syrup and topped with raisins served in a wooden goblet.
Water added spiced marmalade on toast, fudge and milk chocolate caramel wafers. We were then served a bowl of porridge with raisins and dried fruits accompanied by a wooden spoon, while to drink we had hot, spiked mulled cider.
CASK No. 85.95
CHOCOLATE PIGS AND STICKY FIGS
€102.00
PROFILE Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits REGION Speyside AGE 13 years ABV 58.8% CASK TYPE 1st fill ex-PX hogshead
It was heaven in a glass for any serious fan of raisins, dates and dried figs, wrapped in cured ham and served with toffee apples and Christmas pudding. Cinnamon and liquorice ticked all the right boxes while sticky treacle engulfed orange zest and dried cherries. A little water unveiled brazil nuts and almonds, lavishly coated in dark chocolate. Crispy pancetta mingled with crystallised ginger, marzipan and prunes, providing delightfully oily textures. The spice from cinnamon, camphor and black pepper tingled until the end, meeting a finish of dried orange and salted nuts.
SMWS ADVENTURES
AN EMOTIONAL ANNIVERSARY
Society member and lifelong adventurer Nigel Vardy credits a drop of SMWS whisky with lifting his spirits following a near-fatal expedition in Alaska. The motivational speaker known as ‘Mr Frostbite’ reflects on the quarter century since that life-changing event, gratitude for his survival and the painful loss of a fellow climbing friend.