Review #792 - SMWS 35.399 'Choose Your Own Adventure' - Glen Moray 18 Year
Glen Moray is one of the distilleries that the Scotch Malt Whisky Society has bottled the most; at the time of writing, there have been more than 400 single cask releases from this distillery and independent bottler combination. Here we have an 18 year old example which was bottled in 2024 for the Society's annual 'The Gathering' celebration.
The first 13 years of maturation were spent in a typical ex-bourbon hogshead; after that, this was moved into a first fill Oloroso cask for about 5 years for finishing. That's quite a long finishing period, meaning this whisky could display some strong sherry notes; in the end, it was bottled at a relatively low cask strength of 50.7% ABV.
SMWS 35.399 'Choose Your Own Adventure' - Glen Moray 18 Year
Scotland/Speyside - Single Malt
Price: USD 195 (2024)
Age Statement: 18 Years
Strength: 50.7% ABV
Cask Makeup: Ex-bourbon hogshead, finished in a first fill Spanish oak Oloroso sherry hogshead
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; distilled January 2006; 199 bottles
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 4 times over 10 months; bottles at 80%, 70%, 60% (blind tasting), and 50% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Fresh fruits of orange, sugar-dusted blackberry, and grapefruit are met by baking notes of caramel and butterscotch. It leans a bit sweet overall, but we also get cocktail bitters and some wood char. Time brings softer complexities of orange blossom, malt, lavender, leather, and cigars.
Palate: Honeyed malt, some darker fruits of plum or prune, some bitter caramel; there's a strong backbone of oak spice, though it doesn't taste overly old. Subtle flavors of flowers and passionfruit pop up, and we get a hint of mango and musty grape skins, followed by inky red wine. The mouthfeel has a medium thickness.
Finish: Warming, drying oak with some tannins, a little bit sharp. Honey, heather, orange peel, and pomegranate combine with cinnamon, nutmeg, and mulled wine. Sweet floral notes linger in the aftertaste, and it's a medium length finish.
Final Note: This is a good whisky, but to be honest, our expectations were a little higher for an 18 year SMWS whisky with a strong sherry finish. This whisky hinted at maturity and dark fruits, but overall, it felt a bit middle-of-the-road: solid, with appeal for a wide audience, but nothing too interesting. Malty notes and a decent oak influence were prominent, along with some orange fruit and a bit of a delicate floral side.
Value is below average because this was an expensive bottle at release. It's a nice bottle, but we think better value can be found, both within the SMWS scope and in the wider independent bottling scene.
Our Rating: 7.3 / 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: 5.00
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 #703 - SMWS 35.386 'A Cup of Kindness' - Glen Moray 28 Year
Review #544 - Single Cask Nation Glen Moray 13 Year Single Cask
