SMWS May 2025 Outturn Review

We're back with the Scotch Malt Whisky Societies May 2025 outturn review. This month has 23 new whiskies, including a few of the upcoming Whisky Wanderer festival releases.

We were joined by Alex Moores for this preview tasting. Alex has been around Society circles for some time, and you may have seen his articles in Unfiltered or the Outturn brochures. He's something of the unofficial SMWS historian, obsessed with all things Society lore from the labels to the liquid and everything in-between. He makes the pilgrimage to Scotland every year or so, and has been an Australian ambassador since 2019.

Not all bottles from the outturn were available at the preview, but check out our social media (Facebook, Twitter and Instagram) to get an updates on any missing bottles and heads up on our other reviews. 

The scores below are based on our initial impressions. For full disclosure, we won't spend as much time with a dram as we usually do for a full review, but we hope you'll find the scores useful.

• 10 - Perfection. One in a million
• 9 - Outstanding. Exceptional whisky.
• 8 - Great. Would seek this out.
• 7 - Good. Quality whisky.
• 6 - Above average. Happy to have a dram.
• 5 - Average. Drinkable whisky.
• 4 - Below average. Passable.
• 3 - Flawed. Noticeable negatives.
• 2 - Defective. Significant faults.
• 1 - Offensive. Pour it out.

Onto the bottles...

6.79 - Macduff Distillery

Name: Pie Eyed
Flavour Profile: Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill STR oak barrique
ABV: 60.3%
Age: 13

Price: £75.00

Oaky and woody initially, before opening up with air. Caramac, wood chips, fudge, custard, toffee, and a little too much alcohol spice appear with time. There’s also a smoky note, like smouldering newspapers, which we assume comes from the cask char. On the palate, there’s orange cough drops, raspberry, mango sorbet, and dark chocolate. It has a nice mouthfeel, but a little too much chilli spice on the medium-length finish. That cask char is less noticeable on the nose. Overall, it’s another dram that’s okay.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: A few pounds cheaper would have been appreciated.

12.87 - Benriach Distillery

Name: Velvety Smooth With a Hint of Spice
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Sweet
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-PX butt
ABV: 59.2%
Age: 35

Price: £425.00

Flat cola, clove, gingerbread—actually, make that red cola—and Toffee Crisp bars appear initially on the nose. On the palate, there’s cinnamon spice, dark chocolate, custard cream, crystallised ginger, varnish, and tobacco. Lightly roasted espresso, pepper, and dark chocolate linger on the good length finish. It has a solid mouthfeel and well integrated alcohol. This is another one we’d like to spend more time with, as we suspect it’ll open up and get even better. Alex rated this half a point higher, but we all agree this is a great drama.

Score: 8/10

Value: Half the price of 12.80, a 34yo sherried Benriach.. even then we still can't say that it's a bargain, but it is cheaper than most other bottlers would charge.

18.75 - Inchgower Distillery

Name: Sea Salt and Soot
Flavour Profile: Oily & Coastal
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill HTMC hogshead
ABV: 53.6%
Age: 16

Price: £85.00

A little tight initially, but with patience we’re getting wet pebbles, sea spray, chippy fat grease, and vanilla buttercream. These are joined by singed orange peel, honey, and lightly charred wood. The mouthfeel has a touch of viscosity. On the palate we’re finding orange bitters, brine, caramel, and saline solution. It’s not overly spicy, with a medium length finish. It lacks complexity, but there are a few interesting notes that we reckon will divide opinion. For us, it’s a 6.5.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: Not bad given the age.

28.109 - Tullibardine Distillery

Name: End-of-summer Consolation
Flavour Profile: Juicy Oak & Vanilla
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 62.9%
Age: 9

Price: £59.00

Fruit salad, strawberry Chewits, and a touch of icing sugar open the nose. It’s light and sweet with caramel wafers and dried mango appearing with time. The palate has papaya, strawberry laces, marzipan, and more caramel sweetness, but finishes with a hit of ginger spice that slightly overwhelms us. Good Mouthfeel, but overall the nose outshines the palate here with that spice dragging down the score slightly.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: A few pounds cheaper would have been nice,

30.127 - Glenrothes Distillery

Name: A Seville Chocolate Orange
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Dry
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-oloroso hogshead
ABV: 60.3%
Age: 15

Price: £95.00

There’s quite a bit of ethanol on the nose, along with some sherry spice, light raisin influence, dry wood, dark chocolate, ginger, and blood orange. The palate has too much upfront spice, though behind it we’re finding similar notes to the nose: orange juice, lime juice, ginger biscuits, burnt caramel, and some milk chocolate—which lingers longer than the other flavours alongside the spice. The mouthfeel is okay. We’d have liked to see this given five more years in the cask. As it stands, this is “Just Rothes”—and if you like that profile, you’ll probably rate it higher, but for us, it’s a 6.

Score: 6/10

Value: Would have been more reasonable around the £85 mark.

35.400 - Glen Moray Distillery

Name: Serendipitous Cake
Flavour Profile: Juicy, Oak & Vanilla
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 2nd fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 56.2%
Age: 29

Price: £250.00

On the nose, we're finding chocolate coins, coconut macaroons, oak, vanilla ice cream, soap, coconut mushrooms, honey, and bananas. The palate brings toasted marshmallows, coconut milk, fudge, Del Monte pineapple juice, gingerbread, overripe bananas, almonds, and sugar cane. A little too much chilli spice joins the other notes on a good-length finish. The mouthfeel is solid. Overall, it’s an enjoyable dram, but it lacks a bit of the complexity we’d expect from a whisky of this age.

Score: 7/10

Value: Nice to see these older bottles continue to come down in price.

48.178 - Balmenach Distillery

Name: Ample Apple Appeal
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Sweet
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 59.6%
Age: 11

Price: £64.00

Granulated sugar, melon, milk chocolate, fresh green apple, warm butter, puff pastry, and chopped apples all make an appearance on the nose. On the palate, there’s freshly baked bread, lemon juice, apple turnover, cinnamon, melon, and a touch of pepper spice. The finish is medium in length, with sweetness and spice lingering. The mouthfeel is okay, but it’s a touch hot. For us, there’s not enough cask influence, and overall it feels a little one-dimensional.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: We feel like £60 would have been fairer.

53.491 - Caol Ila Distillery

Name: Gastronomic Beachcombing
Flavour Profile: Peated
Region: Islay
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-PX butt
ABV: 58.9%
Age: 12

Price: £92.00

A good example of an Islay whisky and of a 53 in general. On the nose there’s iodine, thyme, crème brûlée, melted cheese on a croissant, tar, smoked kippers, Arbroath smokies, burnt newspapers, and peanuts. Based on the nose alone, this feels like it should sit in the Heavily Peated category. The palate is a little tamer by comparison, but the sherry has layered nicely over the spirit. Flavour wise, we’re getting burnt newspapers, orange juice, brown sugar cubes, and pistachio pastry. There’s also maybe just a touch of bitterness. Solid mouthfeel and a good finish.

Score: 7.5/10

Value: In line with what other IBs are charging for sherried Caol Ila.

60.47 - Aberfeldy Distillery

Name: Waxed Paper Honeycomb
Flavour Profile: Young & Spritely
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 57.6%
Age: 11

Price: £68.50

Initially quite tight, with just a hint of citrus, banana, and a touch of sulphur that fades with air. With patience, tangerines, limoncello, pear, and icing sugar begin to emerge. On the palate, there’s more of that citrus—lemon juice and tangerines—alongside sugar syrup, apple juice, and a gentle pepper spice that carries through to the end of the medium finish. The mouthfeel is decent, and the spice is well balanced with the sweetness. Simple but solid.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: Feels like £5 too much for the cask type & distillery.

64.161 - Mannochmore Distillery

Name: Soft, Sweet and Sudetic
Flavour Profile: Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bodega PX barrique
ABV: 55.9%
Age: 15

Price: £85.00

The nose is initially closed but opens up to reveal orange peel, tobacco, melted brown sugar, a grassy note, prunes, and fudge. The nose aromas are pretty similar to what you get on the palate, with notes of chocolate orange, Love Hearts, cherry cola, coffee Revels, fudge ice cream, and a light ginger spice. It has a solid mouthfeel and a good finish with plenty of sweetness. Although, it’s worth noting there’s lighter PX influence than some might want. It’s also perhaps just a little one note, but it’s a very good singular note.

Score: 7/10

Value: A reasonable price for a bodega cask 15yo.

64.162 - Mannochmore Distillery

Name: Adventures Around a Campfire
Flavour Profile: Old & Dignified
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill Spanish oak oloroso hogshead & refill charred red wine barrique
ABV: 53.5%
Age: 17

Price: £95.00

The red wine cask influence is prominent on the nose, initially reminding us of Pinot Noir, with raspberry jam, peaches, and cranberries also standing out. That jam note giving the nose a syrupy quality. On the palate, there’s caramel, raspberry, maraschino cherries, and a light apple and brown sugar sweetness that suggests bourbon rather than sherry for the second cask. We’re not sure we’d have placed this in the “Old and Dignified” profile , but we’re enjoying it either way.

Score: 7/10

Value: Not too bad considering the cask types.

72.124 - Miltonduff Distillery

Name: Soak up the Sun with a Glass of Sherry
Flavour Profile: Deep, Rich & Dried Fruits
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-PX butt
ABV: 58.2%
Age: 11

Price: £64.50

Wait… Is this peated? Strawberry cough syrup, strawberry syrup, tobacco, a hint of thyme, eucalyptus, milk chocolate, pepper spices, and prune syrup all appear on the nose. On the palate, there’s chocolate covered almonds, flat cola, more of that cough syrup, tar, creosote, and dry sticks. It has a good mouthfeel that isn’t overly spicy. We feel like people will be torn, as the palate tastes almost burnt, but we’re all vibing with it. Not sure we’d want a full bottle, but we’d definitely be up for another dram.

Score: 7/10

Value: Feels reasonable for a sherried Speysider of this age.

78.91 - Ben Nevis Distillery

Name: A Rugged Highlander
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Dry
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st Fill American oak PX hogsheads
ABV: 57.4%
Age: 12

Price: £80.00

There’s less funk than we were expecting from the nose. Notes of orange peel, ginger, a hint of smoke, custard cream biscuits, gingerbread, a touch of wood char, chorizo, grapefruit, and raisins all come through. On the palate: lemon juice, fudge, and many of the same notes carried over from the nose. We’re assuming the cask is masking some of the funk typical of the spirit. There are some interesting flavours here, it’s not too spicy, and has an okay mouthfeel. We’d place this in the “Spicy & Sweet” profile. A good dram, if a little boring, and probably not one for those expecting a classic Ben Nevis.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: In line with other Ben Nevis releases.

93.223 - Glen Scotia Distillery

Name: Spruce Jam in a Silent Harbour
Flavour Profile: Heavily Peated
Region: Campbeltown
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 59.7%
Age: 8

Price: £62.00

Tar, vanilla essence, cold butter, campfire smoke, Campbeltown funk, burnt twigs, and whipped cream on the nose. The mouthfeel is good, with a bit of weight to it. There’s nice vanilla cask sweetness on the palate—marshmallows, caramel wafers, lime juice, and agave—but less peat than expected. We’d place this in the “Peated” category rather than “Heavily Peated.” Good alcohol integration and a solid finish. It might be an 8, but with so many great releases from this distillery, they’ve become a victim of their own success.

Score: 7.5/10

Value: Cheaper than the distillery exclusives.

95.106 - Auchroisk Distillery

Name: Strawberry Shortcake
Flavour Profile: Sweet, Fruity & Mellow
Region: Speyside
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-Port barrique
ABV: 53.6%
Age: 16

Price: £85.00

Strawberry jam, cherries, vanilla essence, and orangeade come through initially on the nose. On the palate, rosé wine, raspberries, honey, and sandalwood are joined by a ginger spice that appears on the finish. There’s good cask integration and some interesting flavours. The finish is of decent length, and there’s enough mouthfeel to make it satisfying. We’d like to spend more time with it; while we really enjoyed it, we weren’t quite as big fans as others in the room. This seemed to be the favourite on the night. Anyway, it’s still our blog and we’re going with a 7.5.

Score: 7.5/10

Value: 2 years older and only £10 more expensive than the last Auchroisk, that feels like good value.

112.122 - Loch Lomond (Inchmurrin) Distillery

Name: Inhale for Decorations
Flavour Profile: Sweet, Fruity & Mellow
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill HTMC hogshead
ABV: 54.8%
Age: 14

Price: £80.00

Lemon peel, oak, sourdough bread, yeast, freshly cut grass, and Toffee Pops appear on the nose. The mouthfeel is decent, but the finish drops off too quickly, and we’re finding the dram a touch mouth-drying. On the palate, there’s honey, apple cider, walnuts, custard, and cream. These notes are joined by cracked black pepper spice on the finish. The flavours are a little muted, especially considering it spent time in an HTMC cask. It’s okay, but one dimensional.

Score: 6/10

Value: A tad pricey for Inchmurrin.

112.127 - Loch Lomond (Inchmurrin) Distillery

Name: Huckleberry Laundromat
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Sweet
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill STR oak barrique
ABV: 57.6%
Age: 16

Price: £95.00

The nose is syrupy, with notes of candied orange, cola cubes, thyme, sourdough bread, brown sugar, chocolate, and fudge. The palate delivers plenty of upfront sweetness—vanilla cupcake, red grapes, Manuka honey, and lemon peel—before leading into a hit of Big Red gum spice on the finish. It’s a little one-dimensional and definitely a touch too spicy, but we don’t hate it. One we’d have liked to have seen after a few more years in a cask.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: Still a bit too much for Inchmurrin.

122.68 - Loch Lomond (Croftengea) Distillery

Name: Couils in the Pastry Shop
Flavour Profile: Juicy Oak & Vanilla
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 2nd fill ex-bourbon hogshead
ABV: 58.1%
Age: 11

Price: £64.00

The nose is musty and dusty at first — think dry paper, old wood, and salt dough. Theres some hints of caramel and sugar syrup emerging as it opens up. The palate has plenty of whipped cream, some dunnage funk, and dried mango. There’s little in the way of spice, or heat from the alcohol, but It’s very one dimensional and suffers from a finish that’s on the short side and a poor mouthfeel. There’s better bourbon cask options this month.

Score: 5.5/10

Value: A few pounds off would have been nice.

122.74 - Loch Lomond (Croftengea) Distillery

Name: A Sumptuous High Tea in the Garden
Flavour Profile: Juicy Oak & Vanilla
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill HTMC barrel
ABV: 56.6%
Age: 12

Price: £75.00

Cinnamon, fudge, cherry cola, and brown sugar—it’s almost slightly sherried on the nose, with chocolate orange in the mix as well. The mouthfeel is a touch thin, but there’s plenty of citrus and mango sweetness, along with butterscotch, Fudge Fingers, and toffee ice cream. The finish is of good length, morphing into a sweet chilli spice. It’s a little simple, a little mouth-drying, and a touch spicy—none of which put us off too much, but collectively they do bring the score down a little.

Score: 6/10

Value: Should have been more in line with the other Croftengea from this outturn.

134.20 - Paul John Distillery

Name: Cocoa, Nuts and Coconuts
Flavour Profile: Sweet, Fruity & Mellow
Region: India
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 57.6%
Age: 4

Price: £140.00

Beef Monster Munch, Marmite, plastic… quite yeasty, like bread dough, with a hint of cashew nuts. The nose raises some concerns about the palate. Which, as it turns out, is better, though a strange plastic note still lingers. There’s lemon, vanilla ice cream, and a touch of caramel in the mix. The mouthfeel is good, and the medium finish brings in a hit of pepper right at the end. It’s better than the other fast-maturation offering from this outturn, but still pretty poor overall.

Score: 5.5/10

Value: Way more than we would personally pay for a Paul John release.

135.64 - Loch Lomond (Inchmoan) Distillery

Name: Witchcraft!!
Flavour Profile: Peated
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill HTMC hogshead
ABV: 53.2%
Age: 19

Price: £125.00

Antiseptic, orange cough drops, ginger beer, vanilla essence, fruit salad, apple, pastry, ginger nut biscuits, and tar on the nose. The palate opens with a nice medicinal hit, balanced by sweeter cask notes like runny honey and pineapple. It’s not overly spicy and has a reasonable finish and mouthfeel. Some will rate this higher than we do—there’s a funky Lomond note that puts us off slightly, and we’d have liked more time with it to see if we could push past that.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: A good price for a 19yo.

138.20 - Nantou Distillery

Name: Lust for Custard
Flavour Profile: Sweet, Fruity & Mellow
Region: Taiwan
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 55.5%
Age: 7

Price: £90.00

Plastic, milk chocolate, heavy ethanol, light sulphur, and brown sugar—it gives off strong “new make gone wrong” vibes. The palate has a reasonable mouthfeel, with notes of citrus, vanilla essence, banana, aspartame, and pepper spice, but it really feels like this needed much more cask influence. The finish is medium in length, with a mix of the aforementioned notes lingering. Unfortunately, we really didn’t enjoy this. It’s a dram we’ll remember tomorrow—for the wrong reasons.

Score: 4.5/10

Value: Reasonably good value for Nantou.

162.5 - Isle of Raasay Distillery

Name: Invigorating & Refreshing
Flavour Profile: Spicy & Sweet
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill chinkapin oak barrel
ABV: 61.1%
Age: 5

Price: £65.00

Noses older than its age. Plantain crisps, caramel, and overripe fruit all appear on the nose, alongside some cinnamon spice, though not as much as you’d expect given the ABV. Unfortunately, the nose is better than the palate. The palate carries many of the same notes, but there’s a bitter element, presumably from the cask, that we can only imagine would be best described as resembling earwax, and it really puts us off. It has a good mouthfeel and isn’t too spicy on the medium length finish, but we needed less bitterness to score it higher.

Score: 6/10

Value: In line with the market price for Raasay.

G15.30 - Loch Lomond (Rhosdhu) Distillery

Name: Pleasing and Delightful
Flavour Profile: Juicy Oak & Vanilla
Region: Highland
Cask Type: 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel
ABV: 62.1%
Age: 8

Price: £50.00

The nose opens with coconut creams, mangoes, lemon peel, pear drops, acetone, butter icing, butterscotch and light honey. There’s a pleasant mix of sweetness and citrus. The palate continues the citrus theme, offering fresh-squeezed lemon, simple syrup, candy floss, and a touch of coconut milk. Ginger spice emerges on the finish, which lingers for a decent length. It’s a tasty dram, if a little simple overall. With the palate leaning more towards grain than the nose might suggest.

Score: 6.5/10

Value: Good value as always with the G15's.

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