Glen Scotia Southport Whisky Club Cask #33 & Glen Scotia 8 Year Old 2014 (cask 21/655-9) - Master of Malt Exclusive Cask

Glen Scotia Southport Whisky Club Cask #33 

Region: Campbeltown

ABV: 57.1%

Price: £69.00

This unpeated release was distilled in 2013 and aged in a first fill bourbon for 9 years before being bottled in 2022 for the Southport Whisky Club. 230 bottles were made available.

Nose

Initially we’re getting vanilla sponge cake, amaretti biscuits, warehouse must, and sea breeze. There’s a light almost smoky aroma, that we’ll say is roasted wood. A little time in the glass reveals gingerbread biscuits, along with white pepper, tangerine zest, and fresh strawberries. It reminds us of freshly baked brioche buns, as it’s got a really nice butteriness to it.

Palate

Like the nose the palate has a nice buttery texture, along with sweetened cream, salted caramel, and caramac bars. The bourbon cask sweetness is nicely intertwined with a little less Campbeltown funk than we we expected, it’s quite clean overall. It’s cakey, with more of that white pepper spice lingering on the good length finish. It’s not overly alcoholic, but it feels a touch spiritous at times. There’s also a slight acidic grapefruit bitterness, lemon peel and grape must. 

Nose (with water)

Reduced this is saltier, zestier, mustier, with some of the sweeter vanilla notes pushed into the background. It’s got more of a toasted aroma now, toasted bread, fresh lemonade and a dusting of icing sugar. 

Palate (with water)

Reduction brings more zingy citrus off the bat, lemon and grapefruit. The mouthfeel has deteriorated a little, but it’s not too big of a deal. We’re getting some apples and pears coming through now, along with baked cheesecake and a slight oakiness on the finish.

Conclusion

A clean, sweet, buttery delight. Unpeated Glen scotia done right. It’s got great texture, balance and the spirit works in harmony with the cask. The finish is a touch shorter than we’d like, but that’s nitpicking. Glen scotia is the real under the radar distillery and you won’t be disappointed if you grab a bottle from this cask.

Score: 8.5/10

Glen Scotia 8 Year Old 2014 (cask 21/655-9) - Master of Malt Exclusive Cask 

Region: Campbeltown

ABV: 54.9%

Price: £69.95

This unpeated release was distilled in 2014, and aged for 8 years, including a finishing period in a first fill PX cask, before being bottled in 2022 for Master of Malt. 300 bottles were made available.

Nose

Butterscotch, caramel wafers, dates, honey, milk chocolate, Campeltown funk, and maraschino cherries. It’s got a nicely balanced sherry influence with a fair amount of the bourbon cask still shining through. It’s also a little musty, with black pepper, cinnamon sticks and nutmeg. 

Palate

An oily palate begins with dark chocolate, cherry liqueur, cinnamon and syrupy raisins. There’s some salted caramel, mint and brown sugar sweetness riding through to the good length finish. The sherry finish is quite apparent here, it’s rich and chocolatey with molasses and slightly burnt toffee coming through. 

Nose (with water)

Reduction brings out some charred oak, toasted cinnamon sticks, dry earth and the top of a creme brûlée. There’s more chocolate and cherry too.

Palate (with water)

It’s very cherry forward now, along with blackcurrants. It’s richer, but there’s a top note of caster sugar balancing this out. The finish has some coffee appearing now. The water has actually brought a little more balance and complexity to the dram, we’d recommend adding a splash. 

Conclusion

It’s quite delicious, but perhaps a little one dimensional. The sherry is much more prominent on the palate, and we’re finding that it overpowers the spirit somewhat. It’s not a sherry bomb, it’s just there’s predominantly rich, syrupy, sweet flavours coming through. We still really enjoyed the dram and would easily drink another dram or three. 

Score: 8/10

• 10 - Perfection. A whisky that we’ll remember forever.
• 9 - Amazing. We’d pay through the nose for a bottle.
• 8 - Great. Pick this up at RRP.
• 7 - Good. Happy to have a dram or two but wouldn’t buy a bottle.
• 6 - Passable. Would accept a dram, but wouldn’t seek it out.
• 5 - Poor. Would drink if it was the only option.
• 4 - Bad. Maybe it can be saved by ginger beer?
• 3 - Awful. It can't be saved by ginger beer.
• 2 - Pour it out
• 1 - We’ve never tried a whisky rated this low and hopefully never will.

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