02/10/2026 An Ardbeg to welcome October

When Francis Cabrel wrote a song about this month, he spoke of dead leaves, mist and scarves, woolly jumpers and an anaemic sun we hardly saw. In 2026, October means 20-25*C, sweaty commutes and watering the plants that have endured the sun all day long -- with rain water, since there is still a hosepipe ban going on. Hard to stay chirpy, innit.

33.52 10yo 1994/2004 Rowan jelly and menthol cigarettes (58.3%, SMWS Society Cask, Refill Hogshead): nose: it is a farm-y one, with ploughed fields, peat bricks and mercurochrome poured onto them. There are hints of vegetation as well, mosses and roots of all kinds, that pave the way for a more-typical Ardbeggian nose: fishnets drying in a field and ink. That (black) ink comes to dominate the picture, given a few minutes, and lets drier notes emerge: charred skewers, spent incense, scorched earth. There is even a whiff of manure desiccated with ashes and chalk for sanitation purposes. The second nose is purely farm-y, with muck, manure and other natural fertilisers (agricultural lime comes to mind). Mouth: fruit, straw and cereal at first. It has unripe white peach, dried Korean pear, straw bales and roasted barley. Chewing shows just how strong it is, but also sets the straw on fire and douses it with black ink to extinguish it. Mussel shells appear, after a while, in parts salty, sandy and petrolic. The second sip has unripe citrus peels, earth, some moist, some dry, unripe berries trampled into the mud, and dried hazelwood consumed by a flame. To a lesser extent, it also has salt and pepper. Finish: it kicks more modestly than expected and it displays heated (not burnt) earth, ink, fishing nets after a day in the sun, a dollop of petrol and a minute quantity of mentholated roasted barley. It gives a strangely-liqueur-like impression in how it sticks to the tonsils. Retro-nasal olfaction detects sphagnum moss and lichen stuck to the side of an empty vase. The second gulp has more dried lichen and residue in an evaporated pool of stagnant water. Scorched earth and a pinch of sugar certainly join smoked plums in the frame, yet, once the sphagnum moss and lichen have shown their faces, it is harder to see past them. 8/10 (Thanks for the sample, PS)

29/09/2026 Bruichladdich

Bruichladdich 25yo 2010/2026 The Laddie (61%, OB Valinch Limited Edition for UK Academy April 2026, 2nd Fill Bourbon Cask, 7b, b#007): nose: supremely fresh, in pure Laddie fashion. Sea spray, kitchen cleaning products (though not bleach), lily-of-the-valley in a vase covered in morning dew. But that is not all: it also entertains pastry -- choux dough and custard, i.e. éclair sans chocolat or boule de Berlin. That, in turn, moves towards woodier notes, at first an untreated birch shelf, then a stained desk. Said desk has a leather desk pad on it. The second nose is warmer. It offers a spoonful of Marmite diluted in a litre of boiling water, beef stock and hot cross buns. Soon, it goes back to the bakery, with custard, butterscotch and fudge. This time, however, it completes the picture with a rusty dish and dusty, oxidised zinc plates. Mouth: strong for the onset, it sprays wood stain and creosote in all directions. It then turns quiet to focus solely on heat; heated needles pricking the tongue, acupuncture style. Chewing gives us wood (not that way!), with butterscotch, wood stain, carbonyl, turpentine and pencil wood before the lead is inserted. Dry and bitter, if not unpleasant. The second sip brings crushed freshwater mollusc shells -- until one chews, at which stage salt water comes rushing in. Finally, we have a pot of custard simmering on the hob -- a hob with a metal top, not enamel nor ceramic. Finish: strangely, much of the bitterness from the mouth disappears. We find softer wood notes, custard, toffee, caramel. It is not very long before coffee enters the scene, sweetened, yet bitter nonetheless. Unless it is hot water in which Mokatines have soaked. The second gulp continues the caramel-y journey, and the soft bitterness of Mokatine water (if we can call it that) now also points at a hot-metal hob. Soon enough, sweetened coffee returns that could well be mocha. Competent dram. And quite the rarity, to boot! 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, JL)

27/09/2026 Fête de la Communauté française de Belgique

The ideal scenario would be to try a Belgian Owl, especially in light of its announced liquidation, earlier this week. But there is none at tOMoH's, at the moment. What else, then? A Daftmill? Well, we French-speaking Belgians can be a bit daft, so that works!

Daftmill 15yo 2009/2024 (56.3%, OB Fife Strength, 19 x First Fill ex-Bourbon Barrels + 1 x ex-PX Cask, 3840b): nose: caramel, gingerbread, toffee. It stays clear of fudge, but it promises to be sweet, there is no doubt about that. A little shaking and a little breathing confers this a heated-metal note, if only for a moment. It swiftly returns to sweet aromas, now closer to a fluffy cake with a crispy crust, and a lemon-drizzle cake caramelised on the sides. Yellow meadow flowers eventually reach us too: buttercups, daisies, dandelions. They start off fresh, then smell as though they have been smashed and ground on a slab of limestone. The second nose is more-clearly fruity, with lime and pomelo segments, and a couple of mint leaves. It makes me think of a Major Bailey, a cocktail with gin, lime and mint (and lemon). With water, this smells like flavoured water from a dispenser in a hotel lobby. Cucumber water, lime water, pomelo water, mint water. That is now crystal clear. It takes a while for cakes to come back; they are then butterier. Mouth: lively at once, it has yellow flowers all the way, bright, soft, and a tad bitter, as the stems start to become more discernible. It is a little hot too (green chilli). Chewing stirs all the flowers in a simmering pot of hot water. Next up is spearmint, rather fiercely refreshing. We find some sugar, almost entirely hidden behind the same heated metal we found on the nose. Here is an old-school pan of stainless steel -- no teflon, no coating of any kind. The second sip is softer and creamier until one chews: it is then as hot and lively as ever. Green citrus, some candied, some zested, some fresh, mint, candied angelica and a pinch of ground cloves. Water makes this mellow AF, like biting a pillow. Candy floss comes to mind, yet is has none of the vulgar sweetness of that. It may well have a creamy toothpaste instead -- a minty one. Finish: mint crumbles is what it is. Sherbet with none of the fizz, and a numbing, herbal freshness. Perhaps it has candied lime zest and peeled-cucumber chunks. The second gulp presents a lime custard, but also tzatziki, lime zest and heated metal, on the late tip. It may unearth fennel and/or dill, albeit subtle. For the major part, it is candied angelica, candied lime peels, cucumber peels and a pinch of grated Aspirin. Indeed, the mild bitterness from earlier seems to take off, a bit. Adding water softens the finish and makes it dangerously quaffable. Mint crumbles melted into a paste, pomelo yoghurt, crushed mint in a glass of gin & tonic. Or a highball augmented with mint, lime zest and a spoonful of honey. This is excellent and perhaps even better with water. 8/10 (Thanks for the dram, JS)

25/09/2026 DW's Pre-Show bash at Milroy's

Yes, it is called Milroy's again. Bye-bye, 3 Greek Street! Well, the address has not changed.

Anyway, DW gathers us for a wee tasting the week before Whisky Show. BB, BA, cavalier66, YM, PS, SW, JL, CDn, IH, JS, DK and Gx join DW. And myself, obviously.

As usual, it is fast and furious, rather than an analytical tasting. We freestyle our way through whatever everyone has brought. For the record, my contributions are Dalaruan (46%, The Lost Distillery Company Archivist’s Selection, B#1/i, b#298) and Royal Lochnagar 10yo b.2006 (57.2%, OB The Manager’s Dram, European Oak Cask, b#1189); JS brought Dailuaine 29yo 1982/2012 (60.6%, The Nectar of the Daily Drams). I do not try any of them tonight.

Ocean Whisky Victory (42%, San-Raku Ocean distributed by Japan Import System) (BB)

Nose: spirit-y and green. It smells a little rough around the edges.

Mouth: very neutral. Sweetened water, caramel soaked in water, Βανίλια and a bit of cardboard.

Finish: Werther's Original, cardboard and stale caramel.

Comment: a decent blend and a decent starter.

Score: 6/10

Nikka Apple Wine (22%, OB, 128510622) (JL)

Nose: unfuckingsubtle. Sickly sweet. Causes diabetes just smelling it. Candied apples, pine-needle liqueur, salmiyakki without the liquorice, vanilla biscuits.

Mouth: apple juice. It is still unsubtle, but it is no longer sickly. In fact, it is very pleasant, I am surprised to find out.

Finish: juicy apples, apple juice, cloudy apple juice.

Comment: off the back of the Victory, JL fishes this out of a cabinet. I love it. Objectively, it is vulgar, of course. But it does the trick. Probably works a treat as a highball too.

Score: 6/10

Glen Keith 28yo 1993/2021 Release No.39 (52.2%, Alistair Walker Infrequent Flyers, Rye Barrel Finish, C#4827, 294b) (DW)

Nose: Gummibärchen. This is one of the fruity Glen Keiths, even though the bottle was opened only ten minutes ago and it has not had a chance to open up.

Mouth: mellow, chewy, it develops a soft bitterness on the tongue.

Finish: long and warming, with remnants of the earlier fruits.

Comment: nice. It will likely become even better after breathing.

Score: 8/10

Inchgower 24yo 1990/2014 (~54%, duty paid sample, C#5567) (CDn)

Nose: mineral, it has crushed rocks, then gauze and old cardboard packaging.

Mouth: what a split personality! On the one hand, it is fresh as water sprayed onto rocks; on the other, it has dusty cardboard.

Finish: big and blend-y, it has cardboard and rocks wet with sea spray. It is fruitier with water.

Comment: CDn explains he was sent this duty-paid sample that was a contender to be a Manager's Dram, one year. Talk about an exclusivity!

Score: 7/10

Ardmore 26yo 1997/2024 Summer (50.3%, The Whisky Exchange The Seasons, De-Char Re-Char Hogshead, C#901299, 211b) (DK)

Nose: a wonderful farm-y nose, full of mud patties and cow pastures. Next, we have cigarette ends, extinguished in a fruit bowl.

Mouth: soft and fruity, remarkably mellow but not weak. Apricot slices dunked into ink. Chewing turns it darker and darker.

Finish: long, fruity and a tad earthy-ashy. There are hints of peat, even. It leaves the tongue numb.

Comment: very good. What a reliable distillery that is!

Score: 8/10

Glenburgie 17yo 2009/2026 (53.7%, Thompson Bros., 1st Fill Bourbon Barrels, B#2, 1134b) (BA)

Nose: butterscotch and Custard Cream biscuits topped with a drop of caramel and shoe polish.

Mouth: caramel, fudge, chocolate custard and butterscotch indeed. A pinch of lemon zest too. It is dangerously easy to sip.

Finish: beautiful custard, flan and a drop of caramel for a softly-bitter touch.

Comment: very good, though I struggle to find it exceedingly exciting, tonight.

Score: 7/10

Longrow 15yo 2004/2019 (52.4%, OB, Fresh Rum Casks, 911b) (DW)

Nose: smoked metal. Cast iron and the smoke that comes from heating iron to melt it, probably. Some scorched earth, maybe, though that may just be suggestion playing tricks with my brain. It definitely has crushed seashells, on the other hand.

Mouth: the maritime influence is more pronounced, here. Candied seashells, razor clams, wet sands, fishing nets, scorched earth wet with sea water.

Finish: scorched earth again, backed by ozone and sea spray. It has a lick of menthol as well.

Comment: I love this. It is objectively not better than the previous dram, but it works better for me tonight.

Score: 7/10

Springbank Cask Owner's (unknown ABV, OB Private Bottling) (BB)

Nose: farm paths in the summer and cut orchard fruits. A cowboy walks past, clad in suede clothes. Yes, it looks a bit tacky.

Mouth: ooft! This has an unlikely mix of mint lozenges, jelly sweets and leather boots in desert dirt. There is rubber at second sip, if only a little.

Finish: dry leather, tumbleweeds and cut orchard fruits embellished with a pinch of desert dirt.

Comment: excellent.

Score: 9/10

Others now gravitate towards IH's prestigious bottle.

cavalier66: "Remember that time we had eight Port Ellens?"
DCn: "Yeah."
cavalier66: "We started with eight..."
CDn: "We had the other eight three years earlier."

cavalier66: "I wasn't at that one.
"CDn: "It was nice."
cavalier66: "It was also at eight in the morning..."
tOMoH: "Oh! baby..."

Bruichladdich 25yo 2010/2026 The Laddie (61%, OB Valinch Limited Edition for UK Academy April 2026, 2nd Fill Bourbon Cask, 7b, b#007) (JL)

Nose: super dry, it has a Highland coo that just had a shave, and the razor used to shave it is there too. It opens up to shine a minty gel.

Mouth: quite big, it reveals suede and soft leather with time.

Finish: huge finish, teeming with Trefin mint sweets and camphor. It is a tad numbing, really.

Comment: rather nice.

Score: 7/10

Port Ellen 29yo 1978/2008 Eighth Release (55.3%, OB Annual Release, B#8, 6618b, b#5394) (IH)

Nose: greasy, tarry earth. It is super dark, super petrolic. It moves towards ploughed fields, tractor fumes and citrus zest after a while. JL smells wood glue.

Mouth: it turns very maritime, now, with fishing nets, kippers and lots of petrol floating on sea water. It gains citrus turnovers at second sip.

Finish: charred grapes (JL), ink, smoked dark grapes, smoky cotton buds (JL). It is much earthier at second gulp, but revives the citrus turnovers, now slightly charred.

Comment: it is alright. Very good, even. But it is hard to accept the cult status these Port Ellens have achieved as totally justified, based on quality alone.

Score: 8/10

Cooley 11yo 1992/2019 (52.9%, Cadenhead specially bottled for Cadenhead's Whisky Shop London, Barrel, 198b) (DK)

Nose: warm wax and struck matches, hot orchard fruits. Keep sniffing and it will give windscreen defroster as well.

Mouth: rotten fruits on the palate, or overripe, at least, with an acidity that flirts with rotten apples (bruised, really), and metallic bitterness.

Finish: we come back to orchard fruits (not rotten). The second gulp gives us more fruits and thyme.

Comment: DK reminds us that he bought this seven years and a week ago. How time flies!

Score: 8/10

JL [to SW]: "Have you seen the time?"
JS: "Are we being kicked out?"
tOMoH [to JL]: "I can still insult your marriage, you know?"

137.10 8yo d.2012 Smoky, sweetie, meaty (64.7%, SMWS Society Cask, Refill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 231b) (PS)

Nose: oh! what is this? Liquorice rolls? Marker pens, white boards and lots of herbs -- dried sage, lemon thyme. It is earthy-minty at second nose.

Mouth: chewy as fook, it has mud and a rising heat. In fact, it is very hot. We find a bit of Parma ham shortly after the taste buds get accustomed to the heat. The second sip brings a lick of suede and earth. It is red hot, though.

Finish: big, buttery, it juggles herbs (basil, oregano) with muddy tones.

Comment: impressive, for the heat, if nothing else.

Score: 7/10

Teeling (58.8%, OB Single Cask imported by Teeling Whiskey Company for Binny's Beverage Depot, Bordeaux Red Wine Cask, C#35340) (YM)

Nose: it is caramel and fudge with alcohol on steroids. It somehow has a cast for a broken leg, then hot metal pipes.

Mouth: it feels plastic-y for a second, then offers lovely fruits, mainly nectarines and plums. Chewing underlines plastic and nectarines.

Finish: lukewarm (it is not meant as an insult) and kind of fruity. It is a bit generic a finish, but I am perhaps a trifle toasted.

Comment: nice enough.

Score: 7/10

BA: "I have a tasting in Ipswich. It's a group who want to do a gentlemen's club."
DW: "What does it take to be a gentleman? Shagging someone's wife? Or some wife's son?"
[We laugh]
DW: "Please remove the wife bit from your notes."

CDn is about to leave when he realises there is a Lochnagar on the table. He stops to try it and seems to appreciate it.

So many others we do not try.

PS brought this classic

cavalier66 and BA brought the same bottle

DW brought the remainder of a bottle he had bought for a party at cavalier66's

SW shows off the new wares

BB proves he is a Japan fanboi

cavalier66 brought the remainder of this that we had an eternity ago

An interesting-looking Moray that I will never try

YM brought souvenirs from Campbeltown

PS took this prestigious drop with him

Another of cavalier66's sample

Imported whiskey from cavalier66

Someone brought this bottle
which we tried a year ago

cavalier66 brought this masterpiece

Another cavalier66 special, this
legendary Irish from many moons ago

BA put this rum under my nose first thing,
then I still failed to try it

Time to go.

22/09/2026 The Creators Collection

They are making room on the shelves by hosting a tasting in which we can try entries from the various iterations of this collection. Tonight, we can taste them as part of a flight, just like any other outturn. To spice things up, the good folks at SMWS offer a few venue exclusives to try as well.

35.388 32yo b.2024 Homecoming: The essence of heritage with Shona Hardie -- Snug and toasty (53.9%, SMWS The creators collection, 2nd Fill ex-PX Hogshead Finish, 182b): nose: prunes, raisins, dried figs. Here is an archetypal PX cask at work. Sweet and elegant, it opens a jar of strawberry-and-blackberry jam, spreads said jam on plasticine, adds a spoonful of buckwheat honey, and serves that with a bowl of lychee and purple maracuja on a metal plate. The person serving is a mechanic who just applied grease to a cylinder block and wiped hands with a rag. The second nose is a pint of lukewarm chocolate milk with a dash of windscreen defroster. It is seconds until we find another fruit stash -- blueberries, purple maracujas, pink peaches, dark grapes, slightly-smoked mulberries. It has something pine-y too, and if it is not génépi, it is droplets of pine liqueur. Fruitier yet with water, it adds oranges and blush oranges to the plums. Bizarrely, something in the back feels almost butyric or akin to lactic acid. Mouth: spicier than anticipated, it has dried green-chilli flakes to impart a soft bitterness and heat. A second's chewing coats the tongue with plasticine, adds cut flowers in a vase (daffodils, tulips, irises) and brings us back to fruits, although it is almost only plums, this time. There is a hint of menthol or peppermint, rather subtle. The second sip sprays defroster onto plums and pine needles. Chewing conjures up images of the stale air trapped in a drawer one opens once a year at most, and cinnamon-flavoured cocoa. It acquires lukewarm orange juice, in the long run. With water, it ventures towards wood and plastic, with old chipboards, plastic buckets and hardened plasticine. Desiccated plums are here too. Finish: rancio, plums and prunes enhanced with a dollop of minty or mentholated toothpaste, then clay and chewy cinnamon sticks to accompany some flowers. It is really chewy -- imagine wet chamois leather. Perhaps it has ginger powder too, yet loudest are cinnamon and a peppermint paste. The second gulp gives a slap of fruits (unripe plums and nectarines) and woody notes: dried lemongrass, sawn chipboard and cinnamon yoghurt. Riper and riper plums slowly come back to prominence, however, supported by lovely mixed peel. The addition of water makes this very fruity again; plums, berries, grapes, discreet purple maracujas and a dusting of cinnamon powder. This is excellent. My score may be generous, but I love it. 9/10

149.15 9yo b.2026 Lovely lozenge (63.7%, SMWS In Celebration 28 Queen Street Exclusive Cask, ex-Bourbon Barrel, 196b): nose: sharp and strong, this nose presents eau-de-vie and industrial cleaning alcohol, if not surgical alcohol. Hot desert sand, a distant whiff of iodine, and something that promises to be earthy, but never quite delivers. Further sniffing catches incense, empty husks, bone-dry grist. That is it! It is extremely dry is what it is. The second nose takes a turn towards caramel flan served in a galvanised-iron bucket. Water fertilises the earth from earlier. It does not become muddy, but it is greasy earth alright, good for crops. Mouth: unexpectedly mellow, even juicy. We find plum juice and peach nectar, pressed cotton grapes, silky, sweet. That is quite a contrast with the nose! Chewing stirs that to bring earth to the surface, dried, crusty lumps of earth that make the whole drier again, yet especially numbing. This is one that leaves the tongue shaken as if hit with a lead pipe. Despite that, it still manages to serve some fruits -- greengages in the lead. The second sip is drier; sand, beach sand, quarry dust, shingles, crushed glass. It is not long before that is balanced with a spoonful of light-brown sugar. Water reveals wooden skewers, charred, oily, but with no food left on them. Finish: once past a heat slap on the tonsils, the finish presents comforting waves of warmth, fruity tones (baked greengages come to mind), and a blend of granite. Instead of being overly mineral and desiccating, that granite seems to add structure to the whole, which is nice. The second gulp feels more mineral. Nothing off the scale, but certainly quarry dust and residue on a flint knapper's outfit. It has virtually no fruit left; perhaps ground greengage stones is all. Adding water brings out oily prune syrup. The mineral profile turns earthier and richer. This is nice. I do not know if I prefer it with or without water. 7/10

149.21 9yo 2016/2026 The New Wave: A taste of our next-generation gems -- Machair medley (60%, SMWS The Creators Collection, 1st Fill ex-PX Butt, 666b): I make no notes on the night other than: "It is really good." I realise the following day that we tried this when it came out.

156.9 10yo 2015/2026 The spirit of five: An exploration of Scotland's whisky regions -- Breakfast in Seville (61%, SMWS The Creators Collection, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 179b): nose: hot plastic! Oilcloth left in a conservatory on a sunny day, the yellow, corrugated-plastic container of that brand of cocoa, also left in the conservatory, plastic buckets and watering cans in the greenhouse... Until a galvanised-iron bucket appears too. Zinc gutters join rubber boots in the greenhouse, as does bird feed, a mix of sunflower seeds, peanuts, oats etc. It stays in the greenhouse, with hoses, planters and earth supplementing the cans, buckets and bird seeds. The second nose blows a whiff of cut flowers (narcissuses, crocuses, hyacinths) and minty almond lozenges. There is a hint of milk chocolate in the background, as well as gunpowder -- or paper gun caps for a toy gun, to be accurate, and that is most unexpected. Adding water renders this more breakfast-y, with lukewarm coffee or cocoa, and hot pains au chocolat, perhaps a couple of oranges not yet pressed. Mouth: hot and acidic, it peddles a heated lemon paste, turnover style. Chewing adds fudge, chewy, sweet and a little earthy, as if one had poured a spoonful of weak coffee onto vanilla custard. The second sip seems more welcoming; hot custard buns and citrus turnovers. Yes, chewing confirms the citrus in particular: it is a lovely calamansi paste in a puff pastry augmented with a generous dose of pepper. Adding water turns the palate into an earthy-fruit jam (elderberry) enhanced with smoked orange segments, which makes it a lot brighter. Finish: assertively metallic, this has a heated knife used to cut fudge into squares. The second gulp seems spicier: white pepper, ginger powder, ground mace. All the same, what dominates is hot citrus pastry and the metal tray it was baked on. Beautifully sweet with water, it has orange marmalade spread onto a pain au chocolat. This one too improves with water. Without it, it is a solid... 7/10

3.364 21yo 2004/2026 The spirit of five: An exploration of Scotland's whisky regions -- Smoked lavender (56%, SMWS The Creators Collection, 1st Fill ex-Oloroso Hogshead, 217b): nose: I want to say smoke, but it could just as well be old cardboard boxes in a dry basement. Past that (thirty seconds in), we spot crayons, chewy dried fruits (raisins). Oh! there is smoke, alright, coming up a few minutes later; the smoke of a thyme-twig fire next to which someone left a suede pouch. A minuscule amount of shoe polish becomes notionally perceptible, as does the recently-polished plastic dashboard of a newish vehicle. The second nose is less defined. We have dusty old glass bottles, empty for yonks, and musty warehouses, which is to say damp clay and stale air. Deeper nosing brings back some smoke. Mouth: shoe polish is a little more identifiable on the palate. Next to it is waterproofing spray. It is upon chewing that things change for the better: tropical fruits tumble out of a cornucopia, smoked mango, baked plantain, papaya cubes, and even timid yellow maracuja. The second sip has grilled and roasted fruits (mango, pineapple, plum, nectarine), a pinch of ash, charred-wood gratings (hazel) and the soft bitterness of unripe plums. There are smoked brambles too, but, again, the smoke factor is low on this one. Finish: although still fruity, it is cardboard boxes in the basement that catch one's attention. That clings to the tongue and the throat until the taste buds realise some of the fruits have not gone anywhere: papaya and plantain are still here, but not baked, now. The second gulp has crystallised berries and chewy sweets of the dark variety: blackberry, blackcurrant, elderberry in sweet format. It stops short of liquorice, thankfully, and only tickles cough drops. Perhaps it offers mango skins, yet the fleeting lush tropicality of the palate is nowhere to be seen. All the same, this is very good. 8/10

3.365 21yo 2004/2026 The spirit of five: An exploration of Scotland's whisky regions -- Sweet seduction (55.2%, SMWS The Creators Collection, 1st Fill ex-Oloroso Hogshead, 211b): is it not crazy that one could try a different SMWS Bowmore every day of a non-leap year? They are wildly different too, so there would never be a dull day (although trends would undoubtedly surface). Nose: generous, greasy peat, fertile soil, dark earth. There is a (cattle-)farm-y aspect too, cow stables or pastures, that almost entirely hides juicy fruits. Indeed, we have plums and peaches trying hard to punch through a wall of leather and cattle hair. Cow dung has a small part too, and it is tempting to picture a horned ruminant taking a dump on a basket of fruits. Unless the cow ate the fruits, then shat them. But cows do not eat fruits, do they? The more we sniff, the closer we come to suede and shoe polish, which is odd, as no-one in their right mind would put shoe polish on suede. The second nose displays aromas of clay beads, crayons and a distant barbecue grille. A marsh-like note appears, lush vegetation growing in suffocating humidity. Mouth: silky and lukewarm, it is very comforting on entry. Warm honey, then the faint smoke of a gas stove, a jam or another, still warm from the cauldron it simmered in. Half-a-chew slaps one in the teeth with cut papaya, even if that pulls a discreet note of violet in its wake. Not to worry! Smoked comes to the rescue and turns the palate into a herbs marinade of the kind they sometimes put on lamb burgers and that holds mostly rosemary. The second sip is fruity, a little smoky and softly bitter. The smoke is reduced to that of a bramble fire, whereas dark wild berries now dominate. Finish: warm and comforting here too, this gives several waves of flavours. First is smoke; then come crayons, borderline waxy; finally, a mix of smashed berries settles, then becomes smoked berries -- smoked on a herbs fire, that is. Tropical fruits do a fleeting dance, for a tenth of a second. The second gulp has blackberry sweets, elderberry drops or liquorice-flavoured Haribo sweets. 8/10

156.7 10yo 2015/2026 The spirit of five: An exploration of Scotland's whisky regions -- No mean confection (61.2%, SMWS The Creators Collection, 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 198b): nose: powerful and metallic, the nose quickly opens up to reveal a mix of spring flowers (daffodils), cut yellow fruits (peach, apricot, nectarine) and plain crackers. It is the aromas that become loudest, fragrant and promise bitterness, which takes us back to metal. That swiftly makes way for sherbet and the smell of straw bales in a barn in a place with a cool and humid climate. The second nose is a wonderful mix of sherbet, flour and chalk or talcum powder. Perhaps it has cosmetic powder too -- it is powdery, at any rate. Adding water evokes a freshly-cleaned bedroom, with soft pot-pourri from the vacuuming, and clean sheets. A minute later, dark chocolate turns into mocha, then chocolate pudding. Mouth: fresh and indistinct at first, it is only seconds before it adopts the bitterness and sharpness of a stainless-steel blade -- pencil-sharpener blade, kitchen knives, that sort of things. Chewing immediately adds a note of milk chocolate and a drop of ink. It is noticeably powerful, without surprise. Straw is in the background, merely a backing dancer, while little of the fruits appear, other than that freshness, which could be associated with unripe nectarines. The second sip is drier. Straw comes back, backed by sherbet and candy necklaces. In other words, it develops a chalky touch, before pouring grenadine syrup on top. Soft and custard-y with water, it has the bitter-sweet taste of Seville-orange marmalade. Finish: it kicks bouteille without aggression. Cut unripe nectarines, flower stems and tons of metal. Cold steel, to be precise. It leaves the mouth throbbing and applies dried orange zest on the taste buds. The second gulp is softer, warm not hot, and peddles gingerbread-y flavours. Sourdough comes out albeit one slathered with apricot jam and a spoonful of marmalade. Water underlines orange marmalade spread on toasted sourdough. It improves with water, in this taster's opinion. Neat, it is... 7/10

Nice wee sesh.