Ah, another lightly peated Glen Scotia from the vaults of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS). The last one, "Members Remember Embers" was a little unusual, featuring notes of sweet medicinal peat, ethereal ash, and light fruit, along with hints of stranger things like fresh gauze, breakfast sausage, and lavender. It was very interesting, and these days "very interesting" is the name of my game.
This bottle is aged 8 years in first fill ex-bourbon barrels, and bottled at a pleasing 60.7%. The official tasting notes from SMWS are a little wild: oily rags, old polish cloth, cider-washed cheese rind, rusty bike chain (!!). It goes on to include a palate of: charred eggplant with olive oil and lemon (!!), birch tar, smoked duck pizza (!!!), and clove-spiced dried orange peel. So I hardly know what to expect...
Nose: Well, this is quite sweet on the nose. While the nose begins a little closed off, I do get a little bit of something akin to oiled cloth (a lot of oil in general, actually), and some light peat, but there is also an undercurrent of ripe pear, and some red apple, red grapes, perhaps washed in antiseptic. As the nose opens (or as you add water), the nose gets fruitier and the "furniture polish" and "antiseptic" notes drop back a tad. Still definitely peated though, and quite balanced between the savory and sweet aromas.
Mouthfeel: Medium.
Palate: Wow - comes in very hot with the high alcohol content, but with a wash of sweet olive oil, apple, coffee, smoke, and something floral. Much sweeter and lighter than the official description. I understand the "charred eggplant" note - there is something densely vegetal here, and the peat and oak interact with it in an ashy way - and it gets more prominent the deeper in the bottle you get. I suppose the oils settle?
In fact, this vegetal note is what I make to be this bottle's version of the "Campbeltown funk" that permeates other offerings from Glen Scotia and Springbank etc. - I also get a lot of oily notes, from olive oil to sweet mineral oil to perhaps very light motor oil. With water, it acts just as the nose did - sweeter, less medicinal. The entire development is sweetish and oily and oaky and interesting.
Finish: Quite a nice finish - the smoke pours through and brings soft lemon pepper and pear with it. Strengthening oak notes. Clean and sweetish.
Verdict: This is quite spirit-forward, and that spirit is bold, bouncy, and flavorful. It also had an unusually active cask, as the oak notes are quite prominent. It's definitely fruitier than the other SMWS Glen Scotia I had, which places it a lot closer to the distillery's own beloved 15 Year expression. A lightly peated, heavily sweet/bitter, interestingly fruity Campbeltown dram that has a lot to offer a casual sipper or a dedicated Scotch hound. Recommended.
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