Inchmurrin 21 Year (SMWS 135.49 "Jack-in-the-Box")

 

Third of six samples at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society May 2023 outturn event at the Jack Rose Saloon. This is a 21 year Inchmurrin (one of the Loch Lomond imprints), bottled at 53.6% ABV. 

Inchmurrin 18 Year (SMWS 112.99 "Feels Like a Caress")

 

The second bottle sampled at the March 2023 outturn of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society ("SMWS") at the Jack Rose Saloon in Washington Dc. This is an older Inchmurrin (imprint of Loch Lomond distillery), and was a very popular sample among the people at the table. 

Inchmurrin 25 Year (SMWS 112.83 "Rara Avis")

The third cask tasted at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society March outturn preview tasting event at the Jack Rose saloon on 2/28/22 was a 25 year old Inchmurrin (Loch Lomond). This was immediately more interesting than the previous two (a young Glen Moray and an older Clynelish). The nose presented as more complex, yet also curiously muted - a fascinating mixture. 

Inchmurrin 12 Year (SMWS 112.75 "Queen of Tarts")

 

I think it's fair to say, at this point, that the recent independent bottlings from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society present the best possible face of the Loch Lomond distillery and all their various imprints. Virtually every bottle I've had has been a riot of flavor, full of intriguing aspects, rich, tasty, and occasionally even sublime. 

Inchmurrin 13 Year (SMWS 122.66 "Dark and Flaming")

 

This was one of those Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) bottlings that I just couldn't pass up - a Loch Lomond (under their Inchmurrin imprint) aged for 11 years in ex-bourbon casks and then ... drumroll please ... another 2 years in a new oak heavy char #4 "alligator" casks. It is pretty unusual to find a #4 in scotch in general (more common in bourbon), let alone in an independent bottling like this. I simply had to try it. Bottled at a very stiff 64.4%, in typical craft presentation, nicknamed "Dark and Flaming." Let's see what alligator char does to a typically sweet, vanilla-forward spirit...

Inchmurrin 13 Year (SMWS 112.73 "Sweet and Savory Excitement")

 

Another lottery bottle (for Burns Night 2021) from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS), this one is from the Inchmurrin imprint of Loch Lomond distillery (as near as I can tell). I know nothing about Loch Lomond or any of its imprints, but I learned when researching this review that they are the only distillery that makes both single malt and grain whisky at the same facility. Inchmurrin-branded bottles seem to review better than the core Loch Lomond bottles.