Around the world with the Society
Here’s a flavour of what’s been going on at the world’s most entertaining whisky club
SMWS lands in Rome
After having taken part in the Roma Whisky Festival for the first time earlier this year, we are pleased to announce that ORO Whisky Bar is the first SMWS Partner Bar in the Italian capital. Last month Society ambassador Francesco Ramella hosted the very first masterclass there, taking guests through six Society drams. ORO Whisky bar is located between the Circo Massimo and the pyramid of Caio Cestio, set in front of one of the best-preserved parts of the Mura Aureliane. Keep an eye out for more on this Roman partner bar in a future issue of Unfiltered.
The Malt Whisky Yearbook
If you’re paging through the Malt Whisky Yearbook for 2023, you might spot a familiar face. Our in-house podcast, Whisky Talk, has been included in the Whisky in Social Media section. Slainte!
When in France…
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society was at Whisky Live in Paris this year with a very special guest. Society Founder Pip Hills appeared at The Golden Promise Bar to speak about the Society’s origins – a story he told in French. SMWS France member, Christophe (@Coldorak on Twitter), met Pip and shared some photos.
A real Keeper
We’re raising a glass to cellarmaster and director for SMWS Australia, Andrew Derbidge, who was inducted as a Keeper of the Quaich at the Keepers’ banquet at Blair Castle last month. Andrew was nominated in 2019, but due to the pandemic, the ceremonies in 2020 and 2021 were postponed. Congratulations to Andrew and all of this year’s Keepers!
A tale of two festivals
It’s back! Glasgow’s Whisky Festival returns to Hampden Park on Saturday 12 November and we’re delighted to be joining as the main sponsor with a very special Glasgow Members’ Room experience.
And for whisky lovers in the north of England, we’re equally pleased to announce our sponsorship of the Kendal Whisky Festival, which will run from December 2-3. This will be the second year for the Kendal Whisky Festival, headed by Philip Walker who runs SMWS partner bar, the New Union pub in Kendal.
Dr Bill at The Vaults
The Vaults kicked off a series of distillery visits at the start of October with a visit from Dr Bill Lumsden, director of distilling, whisky creation & whisky stocks for Glenmorangie and Ardbeg. Members enjoyed a variety of whiskies from Ardbeg and Glenmorangie, including Cask No. 125.79: Fabulous fruit fondants. Listen to the podcast of the evening via Whisky Talk and make sure you book in for the next event at The Vaults on Monday, 21 November with Brendan McCarron, master distiller at Distell International.
All go for Benelux
It’s been a busy month over in Belgium and The Netherlands. The Benelux team have been meeting members old and new at both Whisky Festival Gent and Maltstock, a whisky weekend that takes place in Nijmegen in The Netherlands. UK ambassador Lee ‘Connas’ Connor gave a special SMWS masterclass as part of the weekend’s festivities.
