19/10/2026 Mystery sample #10

Nose: very timid. It presents a vague freshness and a drop of white spirit. Let us give it a minute to wake up... White spirit indeed, green-grape vine, honeysuckle essence spilled on a wooden case full of silver jewels. Crunchy apple slices end up in the frame, just as timid as the rest. This is not a loquacious nose! The second pass has ash and metal. Neither is loud, yet they make me think of a rotating ashtray. Metal and ashes it is. Behind that are citrus and a mineral tone. A flintknapper eating an orange. How unexpected! Mouth: discreet too, the palate has unripe apple, almond and a droplet of defroster. Chewing changes it dramatically: it reveals mint crumbles, soft plasticine and some kind of cinnamon paste. It reminds me of The Pogues. It tickles the gums with a paste made of crushed pine cones. There is virtually no bitterness attached to this; just a chewy freshness. Sweets galore at second sip, chewy, peppered with sherbet. Fruit jellies (yellow, orange, green), a minuscule pinch of ground pepper and crushed bergamot leaves. Finish: more chewy goodness, vaguely pine-y, vaguely spicy, rather fresh. Cinnamon-coated dried mango slices, dried pineapple cubes, bergamots and their foliage. Yes, a softly-bitter note develops that merely adds to this finish to make it a tad bolder. A chewy citrus paste lands on the late tip. The second gulp comes across as a little more herbal: candied angelica and honey-glazed citrus leaves. It is not particularly long, certainly not loud, but makes for a pleasant everyday dram. What is it? A Pot Still?

Sailor's Home The Horizon 10yo (43%, The Sailor's Home The Islands Series, Barbados Rum Cask, b. ca. 2025) 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, Whisky-Online)

Happy birthday sonicvince and JMcD!

16/10/2026 Mystery sample #9

Nose: gorgeous earthy peat, charcoal, crispy dried leaves. That moves towards more-maritime notes of fishing nets and dried seaweed. In fact, it becomes a stay in a shed on the shore of a sea loch on a drizzly day. The drizzle and the humid salty air blend to stick to one's stubbles and provide a perma-salty tang. In that shed, we find a case of old copper coins and a derelict deep-sea-diving suit. The second nose goes to the boiler room -- not that of an old ship, but that of a house, warm, comforting, with a thin humidity over enamelled metal. Mouth: surprisingly mellow, creamy and honey-like in texture, and on the sweet side. Chewing brings back a soft maritime touch, and it is even more surprising to find ourselves tasting a spoonful of custard augmented with a drop of sea water. More chewing adds cigar smoke and ashes. The second sip has noticeable sea water warmed on the fire and embellished with a dollop of minty toothpaste. That is hardly detectable, yet it adds an air of freshness. Finish: rich and peaty without being boisterous. Cake crust, baked pottery clay, cigar leaves, and, still, that custard-y sweetness. Warming, not burning, it appears to have dried off most sea water and lost its salt, somehow. A smoky sweetness lingers, borderline acrid. Only several minutes later do we unearth a pinch of fine salt. The second gulp brings forth a certain freshness reminiscent of distant mint. Perhaps it is long-expired mint crumbles that have lost their potency. Retro-nasal olfaction revives the cigar smoke and cigar leaves, dry at first, then increasingly moist. Nice.

Caol Ila 13yo (43%, Gordon & MacPhail Discovery, Bourbon Cask) 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, Whisky-Online)

14/10/2026 Industry Giants: Dave Broom at the SMWS

Rescheduled at last, after the main guest did not show up on the original date (because of trains issues, not neglect). GT, Dr. CD, PS are here already, and YM and cavalier66 soon join us.

Broom opens the ball by saying how awkward it is for him to talk about his life ("Scots don't really like talking about themselves"), and says it feels like a self-promotion. All the same, he will spend the next couple of hours sharing anecdotes and insights with his usual charisma, much to the audience's delight. He worryingly concerts with JPM too: he chose the (SMWS) drams because of the distillery they represent, so he can talk about the distilleries themselves, and is it alright to reveal the distilleries? (It is)

With that in mind, it is not really a blind tasting, for once.

The Blenders Notebook 18yo 2007/2026 (50%, SMWS, 2nd Fill & Refill Bourbon, PX & Oloroso, B#44)

Nose: lovely toffee, a bit of encaustic, a honeyed patina on rustic furniture. The second nose may well bring copper coins.

Mouth: a lick of caramel and that same honey-like patina. It has a tin box of moustache wax too.

Finish: honey-glazed nuts, toffee and caramel sweets. It turns dustier at second gulp -- like a more-ancient blend, in fact.

Comment: takes me to a smoky pub with wood panels and corduroy armchairs.

Score: 8/10

78.101 8yo 2007/2026 Apples dumped in hay bales (61.1%, SMWS Society Cask, 2nd Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 234b)

Nose: a walk in a pine forest in autumn, with slightly-damp forest floor and a little dash of lemon juice.

Mouth: reminiscent of generic whisky. Cardboard, caramel, a whisper of mocha, after a while.

Finish: a tad sharp, it slowly acquires custard, but that is virtually submerged by ground white pepper.

Comment: takes me to a harvested corn field in late summer.

Score: 7/10

4.406 14yo 2012/2026 Sweetly soothing smoke (64.4%, SMWS Society Cask, ex-Bourbon Hogshead finished in 1st Fill ex-Bourbon Barrel, 220b)

Nose: this has a comforting, warming peat smoke of a farm-y character. Cow stables and cattle pastures.

Mouth: smoked caramel, roasted toffee and tractor fumes as one chews. It feels less smoky than on the nose, sweeter and more greasy.

Finish: the stones of a campfire, licked by flames and somehow impregnated with smoke.

Comment: takes me to countryside pastures. It will remain my favourite of the night.

Score: 8/10

Dave talks about yeast. 

Punter: "Is there any whisky distillery that uses wild yeast?"
DB: "Err... Dornoch! If you have a question of that kind and you're not sure about the answer, usually, Dornoch is a correct answer. They try all sorts of things."

[In a couple of days, a friend from Dornoch distillery will confirm they tried it in Spring 2026, if not before]

53.527 12yo 2013/2026 Seraphic sea symphony (59.7%, SMWS In Celebration of Robin Laing the Whisky Bard, 2nd Fill STR Oloroso-Seasoned Barrique, 276b)

Nose: this one is very smoky and a lot drier, akin to a wood-fire smoke lingering low on cobblestones. It also has ashes and lichens. Dead leaves join, as does cherry tart. Huh!?

Mouth: embers and a touch of ashes. It is glowing hot, not burning. Actually, it is extremely comforting. Mulch smoke comes out.

Finish: big, long and welcoming too, rich and sweet, while earthy and smoky, it is also greasy.

Comment: takes me to a warm pub after a day's hiking in the great outdoors.

Score: 8/10

DB: "Skye is more dramatic. Mull is more dramatic. Islay... gets you."

19.116 13yo 2012/2026 Home for a Christmas Sherry (58.7%, SMWS The Winter Series 2026, ex-Bourbon Hogshead finished in 1st Fill American Oak ex-Oloroso Hogshead)

Nose: brownies, baking and still moist inside. There is a pinch of rosemary followed by smoked berries smashed into a paste. cavalier66 detects flat cola.

Mouth: soft and round at first, it explodes with rubber, after a moment, then settles for plasticine, chewy and a trifle bitter, like flavoured liquorice allsorts.

Finish: liquorice. It is fairly sweet too, and reminds me of cough syrup, with blackcurrants sweets and camphor.

Comment: takes me to the pews of a church, for some inexplicable reason.

Score: 7/10

DB: "Glen Garioch were using their heat surplus to grow tomato plants."
GT: "Did they try to distill tomato juice?"

The final dram is from Broom's collection.

Komagatake 7yo 2015/2022 Yakushima Aging (53%, OB Single Cask distributed by Japan Import Systems, Sherry Butt, C#2026, 602b)

Nose: it is gently smoky and sherried, but extremely floral all the same. The smoke disappears in no time, leaving us with pressed raisins and fewer flowers (lily-of-the-valley, white lilac). Later on, we have hinoki peeking through. Coffee notes appear at second nosing.

Mouth: rich, oily. This has dark, pine-y honey, mahogany oil, and other tropical-wood essences. The second sip feels thinner and fruitier, with lychee and rambutan.

Finish: a noticeable lick of chocolate. cavalier66 finds it savoury. He is clearly not in a state to drive.

Comment: takes me to a far-eastern public baths, enjoying dark chocolate while soaking in the tub.

Score: 8/10

Not life-changing, but a pleasant little session.

12/10/2026 Mystery sample #8

Testing my eyesight too!
Look at that faded label!

Nose: a naked one! Here are straw and crispy dried apple peels. That becomes a little more moist, but it is not a juicy affair, at least initially. Eau-de-vie, apple brandy and a Verdigris-infested copper kettle. Maybe it has a splash of lemon juice, in the long run, though nothing to be overly excited about. The second nose feels drier, if anything, and brings forth hazelnuts that were stored in an oiled mahogany case since last year's season. It turns oilier in a wood-stain fashion. Mouth: mellow and velvety, it is a blend of crème caramel and melted toffee. Were it a trifle dustier, one could say it tastes like an old blend. Chewing crystallises the caramel and we have caramel boiled sweets, Mokatine without mocha (which is like nicotine without Nico, really, or the same without Newcastle-upon-). It grows a gentle heat, gentle enough for the mainstream, just about hot enough for a seasoned taster to notice. A faint sherbet and something earthier take over, after a while. The second sip may well have more bite, with tart apple and roasted hazelnuts dripping their oil. How seasonal! Finish: yes, blend-y, it offers caramel, toffee, a pinch of dust and stewed plums. It lingers like a gulp of spearmint, yet the caramel rules, without being too sweet. The second pass has banane flambée in which the banana is virtually unrecognisable behind the flamed rum. A hazelnut coulis or liqueur slowly gives way to gritty, chalky ground hazelnut, dry, dry, dry. No oil left, here. Unpretentious, unchallenging. What is it? A blended world whisky?

Woven Superblend (46.1%, Woven Whisky Makers) 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, Whisky-Online)

09/10/2026 Glen Grant

Glen Grant 22yo 2003/2026 (52%, Decadent Drinks Decadent Drams, 19y Refill Barrel & 3y 1st Fill Sherry Hogshead, 193b): nose: phwoar! that is a fruity nose. We have ripe plums and dark grapes leaping out of a lacquered jewel case, and all sorts of dried-fruit pastes -- prune paste, raisin paste, membrillo, apricot paste. How marvellous! It has got a bit of dusty plasticine too, an open bottle of Italian wine (Chianti in a bottle clad with a straw basket) and emerging blackberries. Keep sniffing and it ends up giving hot metal (but no methedrine, ho! ho! ho!) The second nose smashes blackberries and myrtles all the way up the nose, hitting the sinuses. That slows down a bit to dish out a lovely fig spread. It promises sweetness and chewiness. Mouth: a modest kick prefaces a sprinkling of pepper and a spoonful of blackberry jam. It is all rather discreet. Chewing slaps the tongue with melted plastic on oilcloth, plum juice and pressed blackberries. It has a sharp bitterness, which suggests that not all fruits are entirely ripe, but it is not detrimental to the overall enjoyment A stick of cinnamon and a splatter of toothpaste inject some wood spices for good measure. The second sip maintains the bitter lick, but, underneath that, we find the same nice fig spread as on the nose. The bitterness now seems to come from the fig pips in said spread. It has a strong wine presence, yet it is not tannic; it is close to a Mediterranean wine that has seen more sun than many would prefer. Finish: it is pretty earthy, here, which is a surprise. Damp clay floors, moist mulch, cassia bark crumbling into shards and dust. And it is anaesthetising too. Some of the fruits from before do show up, indiscernible. Plum stems and grape vines are louder than the fruits they once bore. The second gulp prolongs the earthy-woody notes, with plenty of spices (ginger shavings, cinnamon, cassia) and the beginning of a sweeter note -- another relish or spread, sultanas, dates or quince and lemon, augmented with ground star anise. A strong nose, while the palate and finish are a little behind. 7/10 (Thanks for the dram, EG)