Distillery Dive: #24 – Special Lottery Release
Fancy a dive into an ocean of flavour? That’s exactly what you’re in for! Welcome to Distillery #24, a Speyside jewel that has captured the hearts and minds of so many Society members. Today, we’ll examine the impact of cask maturation by exploring the evolution of one whisky aged in three very different casks!
In October of 2018, SMWS spirit manager Euan Campbell identified a handful of casks from Distillery #24 that had been aged in Oloroso sherry butts for 10 years. He decided this collection of whisky had a different destiny than the usual single cask release. These Oloroso sherry butts would be vatted (married together) and ‘re-casked’ for another 2 years of aging in different first-fill wood. This experimental approach to cask management unearthed an utterly delicious and unique world of flavour, highlighting the impact and influence these additional maturations have on whisky from the same vatting. The trio of casks released today showcases ex-bourbon, Oloroso sherry and PX sherry casks used for additional maturation offering an unforgettable tasting experience! Cask No. 24.149 Character and grace brings the Oloroso sherry character and European oak structure to a decadent dram, summed up by our Tasting Panel as ‘seared foie gras and lingonberry jam on brioche toast’! Cask No. 24.151 Meandering a maze of souks presents immense complexity from an American oak PX cask, with equal measures of rich desserts and exotic spices. The sweeter Pedro Ximenez sherry character offers considerable depth of flavour to explore slowly and deliberately. Cask No. 24.152 Albino rhino shows us why distillery 24 is such a stalwart make of whisky. From an ex-bourbon cask, we discover heady aromas and rich notes of orchard fruits, cinnamon buns, pecan pie, butterscotch and toffee apples. Try this cask first before the sherried expressions and delight in a purely make-driven mouthfeel that will forever impress your senses.
These remarkable bottles are released only as The Twenty-Four Trio bundle to maximize Society members’ comparative experience of tasting these casks alongside one another.
PLEASE NOTE: Only 90 bottles of each whisky have made their way to the US. Due to the expected high popularity of this bundle, it will not be available for ordering today. Instead, we invite interested members to enter the raffle below for a chance to order The Twenty-Four Trio bundle. Entries must be completed by Wednesday September 29th at 2pm EDT, when winning member names will be drawn. They will be contacted shortly thereafter and will have 48 hours to order their bundle (until Friday 10/1 at 2pm EDT). Only active members in good standing will be considered for the drawing.
Slàinte Mhath!
Cask No. 24.149
Title: Character and grace
Tasting Note: We were busy in the kitchen baking gingerbread as well as malt loaf and one panellist’s favourite from mum ‘ooey-gooey’ cinnamon buns with raspberry and blackberry jam. On the palate like a baked Alaska flambe served with pistachio and raspberry ice cream. Diluted a dark chocolate brownie with burnt raisins or a dark warm sourdough bread dipped into a balsamic fig dipping sauce emerged. The taste was deeply characterful, mature yet graceful – seared foie gras and lingonberry jam on brioche toast. In 2018 we combined selected Oloroso butts before returning the single malt to a variety of different casks to develop further. This is one of those casks.
Age: 12 years
Date distilled: October 2008
ABV: 63.6%
Region: Speyside Spey
Barrel: First-fill Spanish oak Oloroso hogshead
Outturn: 322 bottles
US Allocation: 90 bottles
Cask No. 24.151
Title: Meandering a maze of souks
Tasting Note: We prepared a pitcher of ‘Pomegranate Storm’, using pomegranate molasses, rum, orange liqueur, lemon juice, ginger beer, soda water and a dash of orange bitters. On the palate cinnamon custard, creme caramel, coconut macaroons and sea buckthorn doughnuts. A drop of water and we walked through a maze of souks with exotic aromas of argan oi, cumin, saffron, turmeric and ras el hanout teasing our senses. We then ate fresh barhi dates, so sweet and creamy – reminding us of fresh sugar cane, coconut and butterscotch. In 2018 we combined selected Oloroso butts before returning the single malt to a variety of different casks to develop further. This is one of those casks.
Age: 12 years
Date distilled: October 2008
ABV: 63.1%
Region: Speyside Spey
Barrel: First-fill American oak Pedro Ximenez hogshead
Outturn: 287 bottles
US Allocation: 90 bottles
Cask No. 24.152
Title: Albino rhino
Tasting Note: We were delighted to find a deep and heady aroma, brimming with hessian, exotic hardwood resins, cider apples, dunnage must and carbolic acidity. Notes of camphor, lamp oil, butterscotch and toffee apple were all noted. Reduction brought cinnamon swirls, pecan pie, toasted bagel with biscoff spread, chopped macadamia nuts and milk chocolate covered Brazil nuts. The neat palate displayed the initial warmth of aged calvados, then caramelising brown sugar, baked apples, lime curd and yellow meadow flowers. Water brought floral intensity of dandelions, carnations and potpourri. Then touches of herbal cough medicines, tarragon, dried apricots and mineral oils. At ten years of age, we combined selected oloroso butts from this distillery. We then returned the single malt into a variety of different casks to develop further. This is one of those casks.
Age: 12 years
Date distilled: October 2008
ABV: 63.4%
Region: Speyside Spey
Barrel: First-fill barrel
Outturn: 269 bottles
US Allocation: 90 bottles
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The entry period for the lottery is now closed. Feel free to email info@smwsa.com or give us a call at 646-844-1154 if you have any questions!