The Outturn for May 2023 goes live on Friday 12th May 2023
Flavour Hunting – The Scotch Malt Whisky Society release (outturn) several single cask bottlings of Scotch, Whisk(e)y, Rum and Gin, to name a few, every month. Below is a full list of what the SMWS Flavour Hunting May 2023 outturn has to offer. May’s outturn is released on Friday 12th May 2023.
See below the full list of bottles being released for May’s outturn. SMWS single cask bottlings are only available to members, don’t worry you can join the SMWS here, but be quick several of the bottlings sell out as quickly as the hour they are released.
(here is a quick link to last month’s SMWS Outturn: SMWS April 2023 outturn).
Flavour Hunting May’s bottles below:
4.367 – Triumvirate Machinations
56.4% ~ 1st Fill STR PX Barrique ~ 20yo ~ Highland ~ £172.00
A complex but also powerful initial aroma, it was one full of orange oils, heather honey, mineral oils, shoe leather, salted liquorice, umami seasoning and lightly smoked game meats. We also noted natural tar extracts, resinous hardwoods and exotic fruit teas. A lot going on in this one, we agreed. With water we found it became sootier, earthier and tarrier, along with notes of red liquorice, aniseed and waxed jacket proofing. The mouth was initially full of salted treacle, honeycomb, dark fruit syrups, wet leaves, pickled walnuts and aged calvados. … read more
5.129 – Cava Cocktail
54.5% ~ 1st Fill Ex-Bourbon Barrel ~ 20yo ~ Lowland ~ £137.10
An impressive aroma neat revealed sweet melon balls, honey and vanilla, as well as chocolate-coated hazelnuts and warm banana bread straight out of the oven. The smooth, creamy mouthfeel delivered zesty citrus flavours but also a toastiness and nuttiness that reminded some of a glass of Spanish cava sparkling wine. On the nose, water added a classic French baguette with butter and honey next to green jelly babies, straw balls and grass clippings. The palate was a delicious summer melon fruit salad – watermelon, honeydew and cantaloupe with fresh strawberries and some Greek yoghurt, as well as honey and lemon juice… read more
6.62 – Brusque And Broad-Shouldered
54.9% ~ 1st Fill Ex-PX Hogshead ~ 16yo ~ Speyside ~ £106.90
At first we got juicy, booze-soaked sultanas and raisins. Then botrytic grapes, game stocks, dunnage earthiness and salted caramel. The sherry influence was drying, leathery and full of mineral oils and rancio. Lovely stuff, we agreed! With reduction it became fattier and wider in profile, along with some notes of aromatic mulling spices, coffee grounds, bitter dark chocolate and rum ‘n’ raisin ice cream. In the mouth we found darkly fruity flapjacks, cocktail bitters, further big and generous earthy notes, dried mint and salted liquorice. Powerful, but complex. Reduction brought roasted hazelnuts, ginger cake, butter icing, dried citrus peels and cough mixtures. Matured in a bourbon hogshead for 13 years, this was then transferred to a first fill American oak PX hogshead… read more
7.282 – Peaches On Parade
53.9% ~ 1st Fill Ex-Bourbon Barrel ~ 12yo ~ Speyside ~ £75.00
An assortment of juicy fruits, encouraged by enthusiastic nectarine and lemon, welcomed the floral aromas of potpourri with open arms and a hint of sticky wood resin. The parade gathered steam as peaches and cream joined the throng , closely followed by rose water, vanilla-fragranced oak shavings, and rhubarb and custard sweets. The procession stopped at a dunnage warehouse for a drop of water, taking in the aromas of dry earth floors and fine, mature spirit bleeding from the battle scars of long-serving casks. Lemon bonbons and honeysuckle marched forth in the midst of nougat, satsumas and peach yoghurt before we finally met juicy plums and a refreshing dash of peppermint… read more
9.265 – All Things Dark And Mystical
54.2% ~ 1st Fill Ex-Muscat Barrique ~ 19yo ~ Speyside ~ £117.00
The Panel commented that this nose appeared fathoms deep! We noted such varied things as celery salt, crystallised ginger, sticky dark fruits, plum wine, camphor, peach cobbler, leather satchels and herbal wines; gorgeous, multilayered and highly idiosyncratic. With water it became laden with tobacco and rancio vibes, alongside orange sherbet, yellow fruit pastilles, bergamot oil, cocktail bitters, shoe leather, treacle and salted caramel. When neat the palate was rich, with heather ale, bruised apple, ice wine, camphor, pickled walnuts and brown bread with treacle. … read more
16.92 – Sandwich Of Doom
63.8% ~ Re-Charred Hogshead ~ 9yo ~ Highland ~ £60.00
Bewilderingly peaty at first nosing. Smouldering, resinous pine wood aromas drift from the top of the glass, along with brake fluid, a mechanic’s tool box rags, iodine, kelp and charred pancetta, evoking smoky and spicy pork scratchings. With water it’s still a beast, with salt-baked fish, black olive tapenade, heavily salted Dutch liquorice and glowing peat embers. In the mouth we found impressions of burning bracken, smouldering heather, herbal wood on barbecue coals and a robust medicinal aspect. Dilution brought notes of bitumen, tar, waxed canvas and drying seaweed, plus hot chilli sauce slathered on pickled gherkins and dabs of horseradish and English mustard… read more
19.90 – Chilled Toddy
54.0% ~ 1st fill Ex-Bourbon Barrel ~ 19yo ~ Highland ~ £125.00
The initial nose suggested sandalwood, bubblegum, fruit salad juices and gentle waxiness. We also noted subtler aromas of hand lotion, strawberry mousse and tonka beans. Typically full and rich, this is very much in keeping with this great Highland make’s house style. Reduction brought softer notes of buttermilk, honey and lemon toddies, fig rolls and waxed canvas with a warm dash of white pepper. The neat palate opened with shoe polish, almond oil, crystallised honey and flower nectars. Some richness of heather ale and wintergreen also showed through. Water gave us dried pineapple, banana chips and tangerines – an altogether fruitier profile now – with some oatcakes and sunflower seeds in the aftertaste… read more
28.98 – Gripped By A Feeling Of Excitement
60.1% ~ 1st fill Ex-Bourbon Barrel ~ 10yo ~ Highland ~ £64.20
On the neat nose there were plenty of fruits to start with – pineapples, bananas, strawberries and apple pie. The scent of salted peanuts was always in the background, as well as baked sour cream and chive crisps. To taste, plenty of vanilla and toffee notes were followed by candied almonds, peppermint syrup and elderflower cordial. Following reduction, we found grassy and herbal hints arriving alongside the caramelised aromas of a crème brûlée and a red onion chutney. On the palate things were surprisingly spicier, while oaky notes also appeared, combined with the flavour of tobacco, meatloaf and liquorice, plus a steely dry finish, to make this a gripping experience… read more
59.71 – Raisin-Paved Highway
57.6% ~ 1st fill Ex-Oloroso Hogshead ~ 12yo ~ Highland ~ £75.90
This dram’s second home was evident upfront. Raisins, warm tarmac, grape must, salted peanuts and cherry pipe tobacco leapt from the glass as we sat in vintage wooden armchairs. The palate was a rich, resinous and sticky Dundee cake wrapped in serrano ham and drizzled with spiced plum and fig sauce. Water pulled out vanilla ice cream, olive oil and old leather jackets, followed by mango and an open-air market. The reduced palate produced herbaceous notes superseding the sweetness, as thyme and dark cigar tobacco led to a dry finish. After eight years in a bourbon hogshead, we transferred this to a first fill Spanish oak oloroso hogshead for the remainder of its maturation… read more
68.103 – Sophisticated Emulation
56.4% ~ 1st fill Ex-PX Hogshead ~ 15yo ~ Highland ~ £89.50
Freshly squeezed orange and lemon juice were stirred into a glass of cool ginger beer with a drop of minted blackcurrant jam. A touch of smoked salt on the palate accened a gingery spice, with cinnamon and treacle adding further depth. Water initially brought forward fennel on the nose, followed by dark chocolate, peach and dried black cherries soaked in red wine, which were also apparent on the palate. A late emergence of eucalyptus offered a refreshing finish. After 12 years in an ex-bourbon hogshead, we transferred this to a first fill American oak PX hogshead for the remainder of its maturation… read more
71.99 – G 35 – Japanese Car or Norwegian Cheese?
60.4% ~ 1st fill Str Px Barrique ~ 15yo ~ Speyside ~ £92.40
We sat at the breakfast table with inviting aromas of toasted white bread, warm croissants, melting butter, blackberry jam and honey. To taste it was a lot heartier, as we enjoyed Black Forest kirsch and cracked black pepper salami on dark rye bread. Following reduction we found oat crackers with a slice of Norwegian brown cheese (named G 35 for the curious among you), as well as strawberry tarts with mascarpone chantilly cream. On the palate it was a lot more relaxed, with ripe strawberries and sweet green grapes balanced by a peppery spiciness. Following 11 years in an ex-bourbon hogshead, we transferred this whisky into a first fill shaved toasted and re-charred PX barrique… read more
72.120 – “Feeling Hot Hot Hot”
61.5% ~ Refill Ex-Rum Barrel ~ 8yo ~ Speyside ~ £51.80
A lovely start conjured traces of red apples, bananas and tobacco. There was also a picture emerging of watching fresh sugar cane being crushed by an old-time cane press. The Panel was “feeling hot hot hot”, like a limbo fire dancer and a fire eater together on stage. After reduction, we found pineapple in Serrano ham, coconut water and roasted macadamia nuts, with a dark sweetness lurking in the background. To taste, a smoky-sweet rum cocktail with lapsang souchong tea using whisky, rum, fresh lemon juice and a dash of orange bitters. Following four years in an ex-bourbon barrel, we transferred this whisky into a refill barrel that had previously matured rum from Trinidad… read more