The 21 bottles, which are comprised of whiskies aged from between 8 and 29 years of age, were personally selected by leading whisky writer and expert Charles MacLean.
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| Whisky Writer and Expert: Charles Maclean |
This latest batch of single cask bottlings, will go on sale exclusively to the Society’s members around the world from July. Eight of the bottles will be available to members in the UK, including a 16 Year Old from the Old & Dignified flavour category called ‘Red carpet welcome’, which is described as “full-bodied and oily; sweeter and more complex than expected, with dark toffee, pecan nuts and a trace of sea salt in the long, spicy finish”.
Charles MacLean, has been a long-time supporter of the Society; he joined the whisky club at its outset in the early 1980s, and became a chair of its renowned Tasting Panel in 1992. In 2016, he curated a selection of 30 rare discontinued whiskies from auction and his own collection for the Society’s Kaleidoscope bar in Edinburgh.
The process of nosing, sampling and selecting his favourite whiskies with The Tasting Panel took place over the course of a day at The Vaults, the Society’s private members’ rooms in Leith.
Commenting on the news, Charles MacLean, said: “It was a most enjoyable day and a fitting way to help the Society celebrate its remarkable 35th anniversary. In keeping with the way the Society has always sought to unearth whisky casks that are hidden gems, I was looking for samples of distinction. We came across many samples that were okay, but not yet ready for bottling. We were hunting for whiskies that were unusually good examples of the distillery character."
As with all Society bottlings, each of the latest single cask releases is a limited-edition, having been bottled from single casks of whisky. This latest batch will also feature tasting notes written by Charles MacLean.
Established in Edinburgh in 1983, the Scotch Malt Whisky Society now has more than 26,000 members. Since launching it has bottled whiskies from 135 different distilleries.
Posted by Steve Rush