Our second Tasting Panel Experience release of 2022 is upon us, and we can’t wait for you to taste it! For the last three years, we have been lucky enough to have legendary whisky expert Charlie MacLean guide our American members through The Tasting Panel Experience at events across the country. The objective is twofold: 1) offer our members the once-in-a-lifetime experience of participating in the Society’s Tasting Panel under the guidance of the Tasting Panel’s very first chairman, who comes from Scotland to be with us in person; 2) entrust these members with the task of evaluating several casks in a professional tasting format and assessing their readiness for release. The Tasting Panel Experience concluded its third successful edition this past April, and the second US exclusive chosen by our American members awaits!
Cask No. 39.223 Bonkers! may just have been the ‘whisky of the tasting’ for many participants! As you might imagine with dozens of opinions in a room, there were polarizing moments with many drams. This one astounded just about every single member with a beautiful fragrance and substantial palate. Twelve years in a refill ex-bourbon cask and three years in a Spanish oak Oloroso hogshead endowed this malt with dried fruits, chocolatey fudge and bright spices that leap from the glass. Members detected vivid aromas of hoisin sauce, maple syrup, Korean barbecue, balsamic glaze and banana pudding on the neat nose. One member was transported to a French forest floor in October! The palate neat was equally compelling with sweeter notes of toffee, caramel and rum cake, oatmeal raisin cookies and zucchini bread. More savoury notes of smoked ribs, coffee and baking spices also came through. Adding a few drops of water revealed loads of baking spices, nuts (almonds mostly), salted caramel, treacle tart, burnt bananas and old pipe tobacco. The diluted palate was redolent with Bananas Foster, mincemeat pie, chocolate-covered almonds, figs dates, and more roasted coffee. This palate might just be the best kind of bonkers!
We thank those members who participated in this year’s Tasting Panel Experience and helped select Cask No. 39.223. We hope all members across the US can enjoy this very special malt and, while sharing with those near and dear to you, also share in the pride we all feel for our American chapter of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society! The Society’s Scott Brunow sat down with a few lucky members to taste this USA-exclusive single cask whisky. Follow this link to check out the tasting and their thoughts on Cask No. 39.223 Bonkers!
PLEASE NOTE: Due to the expected high popularity of this release, Cask No. 39.223 will not be available for ordering today. Instead, we invite interested members to enter the raffle below for a chance to order Cask No. 39.223. Entries must be completed by Monday November 14th at 2pm ET. Winning member names will be drawn at that time. They will be contacted shortly thereafter and will have 48 hours to order their bottle (until Wednesday 11/16 at 2pm ET).
Slàinte mhath!
Cask No. 39.223
Title: Bonkers!
Tasting Note: The aroma was that of the long-lasting scent called base notes, of an expensive perfume - vanilla, amber, musk, patchouli as well as sandalwood and a hint of smoke. Chewy and unctuous on the palate neat; chocolate brownies, yoghurt coated lightly smoked raisins, demerara sugar, rum and raisin fudge, while in the finish a fascinating layer best described as wood smoke/spice. After reduction we soaked dark cherries in brandy as we enjoyed poached William’s pears in a smooth dark chocolate sauce with the addition of Pedro Ximenes Sherry. After twelve years in an ex-bourbon hogshead, we transferred this whisky into a 1st fill Spanish oak Oloroso hogshead.
Age: 15 years
Date distilled: July 2006
ABV: 58.0%
Region: Speyside Lossie
Barrel: First-fill Spanish oak Oloroso hogshead
Outturn: 212 bottles
US Allocation: 212 bottles