Review #703 - SMWS 35.386 'A Cup of Kindness' - Glen Moray 28 Year
In early November of 2025, we had a chance to attend the outturn tasting for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society's November 2025 releases for the United States. Typically, these outturn tastings consist of 6 or 7 different whiskies, and all of the tastings are done blind, with the bottles revealed only after tasting notes and guesses have been discussed. Most of the time, these bottles are single malt Scotch whiskies, but they originate at a variety of distilleries (the Societies has bottled whisky from over 150 distilleries), and there's a huge range of casks at are used for aging. This is 1 of 6 reviews from this month's outturn.
Glen Moray is a single malt that we've tried a number of times, but it's almost always been with some level of sherry maturation. Here's a different take on the spirit: maturation in a toasted oak hogshead, and an extended maturation of 28 years at that.
This bottle named 'A Cup of Kindness' was slotted into the SMWS flavor profile of 'Sweet Fruity & Mellow,' so we'll be on the lookout for those fruity flavors despite the long aging period; flavor should be in no short supply, as this is bottled at a hefty cask strength of 55.6% ABV.
SMWS 35.386 'A Cup of Kindness' - Glen Moray 28 Year
Scotland/Speyside - Single Malt
Price: USD 350 (2025)
Age Statement: 28 Years
Strength: 55.6% ABV
Cask Makeup: First fill toasted oak hogshead
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; distilled November 24, 1994; 225 bottles
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed blind 1 time. Tasted in a nosing glass, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: White chocolate and coconut; some funky glue-like notes come in, almost a bit like an estery Jamaican rum. Time brings sweeter butterscotch, but also a bit of an oak tannin, almost like a smoky toasted oak, and we find soft black tea notes as well.
Palate: A lot of brown sugar sweetness, but it's balanced by some tannic sharpness and an interesting savory oak note. Golden raisins bring a fruity side, which is reinforced by a hint of grape.
Finish: Lighter notes of vanilla, linen, and white wine; sweetness from honey. In the aftertaste, we get some malty chocolate and a lingering tannic bite.
Final Note: This is a good single malt, but we were a bit surprised when we found out how mature it was. There were hints of the age on the nose with those toasty oak tannins, but the palate was relatively bright and sweet given the age. Overall, while our tasting group enjoyed the bottle, it wasn't near the top of the ranking in the tasting; this might be a bottle that needs to open up over a longer period of time.
As this wasn't one of our higher ranked SMWS bottles, and the cost is quite high at $350, the value here suffers quite a bit. Not a bad whisky, but we think there are other bottles in this outturn that provide much better value.
Our Average Rating: 7.0 / 10
In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.
Value Rating: 3.97
About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.
Check out our other Glen Moray reviews:
Review #544 - Single Cask Nation Glen Moray 13 Year Single Cask
