Well, ladies and gentlemen, I've been lucky enough to sample another offering from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. This one is numbered 3.160, is 10 years old and is called Islay Beach Scene. A little investigation reveals this one is from Bowmore. Here is what the bottle has to say about this one: "The nose evokes pork chops and lemony prawns on a beach barbeque, then hints of buttery mint; fruitier with water, it also finds coconut and perfumed smoke. The palate has burnt heather and barbequed meats with fruit." To find out more about the Scotch Malt Whisky Society please read my earlier review here.
Nose: Sweet, floral, pineapple, smoke (barbeque), peat, butter, mint, pine
Palate: Burning heather, fruit, sweet BBQ, oak, mint
Finish: Long - peat smoke, almond
As you can see, their notes and mine are fairly similar on this one, except of course, theirs are much more poetic. I guess that is an area where I could stand some improvement. There is definitely something BBQey going on here, and that is not one of my typical descriptors.
Overall, this is another very well balanced, very enjoyable offering from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society. However, I still can not get over having to join a club to purchase Scotch. Then again, maybe it is the $230 it costs to join the club that I have an issue with. Then there's the whole mail order thing - which is not even legal in all states. I just wish they would change their business model so I could purchase their offerings at the local shop (i.e. Signatory, etc). However, if you ever get the opportunity, I highly recommend giving one of these a go - I have very much enjoyed reviewing them here. Are any of you members?
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