THE WHISKY WANDERERS COLLECTION
Expect the unexpected
Festival season is a time where distilleries pay homage to their region and celebrate their distinctive character. But this year, the Society has chosen to do things a little differently. Our Whisky Wanderers bottlings might surprise you, as Duncan Gorman writes, so join us as we walk the path less trodden
PICTURED: A selection of the Society's Whisky Wanderers Festival bottlings
This festival season, the Society is venturing off the beaten track. Not just with a range of adventurous and intriguing tastings, but with how we’ve selected each of our casks.
Globally, we are offering up a total of 35 specially selected casks, each of which defies traditional expectations and offers something unique. This series of casks is all about showcasing remarkable whiskies from distilleries and regions in a way you wouldn’t typically expect. In a celebration of exploration and discovery, the series offers members the chance to experience Scotland’s whisky landscape in a whole new light.
PREPARE TO BE SURPRISED
It can be all too easy to form preconceptions over a whisky before you’ve even tasted it. Falling into the trap of thinking ‘It’s from Islay, so it must be peated’ or ‘I’ll never like this distillery’ can lead to missing out on a range of flavours waiting to be discovered.
People began associating specific flavours with each region at a time when the geographical location of a distillery had much more impact.
In today’s landscape, distilleries have the resources to develop any kind of spirit they like. Combined with the individual nature of single and additional cask maturation, there are an unlimited number of flavour combinations to be crafted, no matter where in the country the spirit was distilled.
The truth is every cask is unique and has the power to shine a new light on distilleries and regions alike.
This year’s Whisky Wanderers bottlings encourage you to keep an open mind and palate. From full-blown peat to tropical fruits, there’s something for everyone in this year’s lineup, it might just come as a surprise where it’s from.
ABOVE: Wandering Alchemy, this year's global small-batch festival release
ABOVE: Cask No. 135.64: Witchcraft!!!
WEIRD AND WONDERFUL
Ed Furmston-Evans, the Society’s whisky stocks manager, says: “No matter what your preferences are, there’s going to be a wonderful whisky in our selection this year, which we know you’ll love.
“You’ll see lots of really weird and wonderful things that you might not quite expect, like sweet and fruity island malts. We’ve used loads of different cask types that you might not have seen before, like Australian sweet wine. There are different heat treatment profiles, such as ‘heavy toast medium char’ (HTMC) which the Society has helped to pioneer, and different oak types such as chinkapin oak which is somewhat rarer. So, keep your eyes peeled because there’s going to be something that will surprise and delight you.”
OLD-SCHOOL EXPERIMENT
Although the selection of Whisky Wanderers bottlings will vary depending on where you are in the world, one Whisky Wanderers festival release is going global.
As the latest offering from our ‘Heresy’ range of small-batch releases, Wandering Alchemy puts an SMWS twist on an old-school blend.
“We set ourselves a bit of a challenge with this blended malt,” says Ed. “Euan, our head of whisky creation decided to take whiskies from the five different regions of malt production and bring them together to make a play on an old-school style blend.
“On the nose there are gentle wisps of smoke and a nice earthy forest. It’s like you’re walking through a pine forest in the Highlands, and someone’s got a campfire in the distance and you’re eating an orange. It’s really quite fresh and delightful. The smoke’s there but it’s gentle, like a seasoning.
“Toffee apples and a bit of coal smoke in the background. It’s a very nice, approachable dram that has a nod to the old school with loads of character and flavour of the new school.”
Join us for a celebration of exploration and discovery and get ready to venture off the beaten track this festival season!
