Review #941 - SMWS Blended Batch 15 'Smokus Fruticosus'
This blended malt batch from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society uses single malts from two of our favorite whisky places in Scotland: Islay and the Orkney Islands. The specific distilleries aren't disclosed, but it's a safe bet that the Orkney portion comes from Highland Park, one of our favorite distilleries. There's a little bit more ambiguity with the Islay piece, but based on the whiskies bottled most often by SMWS, we're guessing it's either Caol Ila or peated Bunnahabhain distillate... Laphroaig and Bowmore seem a bit less likely considering the premium SMWS charges for whisky from those distilleries.
On top of the combination of distillates, this whisky also uses several cask types. Ex-bourbon bourbons combine with the fruity influence of both Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry hogsheads; both American oak and Spanish oak are used among these casks as well, so there's quite a bit going on. The total maturation time was 10 years, and at bottling, the Society placed this blended malt in their 'Peated' flavor profile.
SMWS Blended Batch 15 'Smokus Fruticosus'
Scotland - Blend
Price: USD 110 (2022)
Age Statement: 10 Years
Strength: 50% ABV
Cask Makeup: Ex-bourbon barrels, Oloroso sherry hogsheads, and Pedro Ximenez sherry hogsheads
Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; distilled April 27, 2011; 2,445 bottles
Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 2 times (once blind) over 8 months from a sample. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes
Nose: Quite a bit of peat smoke, along with accents of charcoal and barbecued meats. Mildly savory, but soon light fruits build in intensity: sweet lemon, melons, and orange citrus especially. Balance is quite good, and we get a bit of dry hay too.
Palate: The mouthfeel is medium-thick, and there's decent intensity in the flavors. Sweet peat and wood smoke arrive first again, followed by oranges, vanilla, sugary pears, and some fizzy apple. Wildflower honey adds more sweetness; the fruits evolve again, and now we find cherry candies and tart blackberry, just a hint of darker fruits. It grows sweeter with time.
Finish: Fizzy peat lingers, and there's a bit of a dry oak side. The flavors reflect the palate well: orange, vanilla, and then some spicy oak. It becomes a bit more drying and tannic in the aftertaste.
Final Note: For the most part, this felt like a relatively standard ex-bourbon matured single malt or blended malt with a medium level of peat smoke. There are some hints sherry in there, but we found that aspect to be much more subtle. It's a tasty bottle overall, though not the most complex; we probably enjoyed the nose the most out of any part of the tasting experience.
The value proposition for this bottle is decent, on the low end of average for us. It's one of the cheaper bottles you can get from SMWS, but it's also one of the more simple and less punchy whiskies from them; so far, our experience with these small batch products is fine, but we lean toward the single cask single malts.
Our 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: 5.84
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 SMWS blended batch reviews:
