This is the worst whisky I’ve ever had.
Oh, I’m sorry, were you expecting a fun ride where I explain what this is and maybe trying a simple bait and switch? No, we’re cutting to the chase here.
I showed up to a tasting with a mystery. Miltonduff SMWS 72.65 “Winter Comforts”, a SMWS release that was brought in to Alberta and Alberta alone. It was released either in a 100ml bottle or as part of an advent calendar.
A committee, who’s only job is to select whisky and determine the SMWS name should be on it, tasted this and said “Yeah, that’s okay”.
Then someone else tasted it and decided “yeah, I’ll sell that”.
It was so bad all people at the tasting immediately reviewed it to warn the world. It’s taken me a while to catch up, what with life.
Please don’t make the same mistake as me, and don’t try this. Here’s the review.
Price: $27.99 CAD for 100ml
Region: Speyside
Vintage: 14.02.2008
Stated Age: 10-years-old
Abv: 59.8%
Colour: 7/5Y 9/6
Nose: Alcohol, floral, orange, cheap
It smells of burnt alcohol and cheap orange/floral spray. Think being in the Dollar Store and needing one of their cheaper, older candles.
Taste: Alcohol, floral, anise, butter
This doesn’t taste 10 years old. This tastes 10 minutes old. It’s floral. It’s spicy. But it’s mostly just vodka and cheap flowers you wouldn’t buy that one racist great aunt who acts like a jerk.
Finish: Tangerine peel, burn, fake butter/vomit
It tastes of vomit. I… do I even need to explain right? Bad. Just bad. Don’t eat vomit! Vomit bad!
Conclusion: Should have been called Rubbing Alcohol & Pot Pourri. To quote /u/throzen upon reading the bottle notes stating “Tarragon”, he said “more like Terra-go-fuck yourself”. No amount of water, waiting, giving it time, having multiple people… hell it even smelled bad weeks later when one friend smelled it because he wasn’t there (and therefore was the lucky one).
This is why I get angry at SMWS. This should not exist as part of SMWS. This should never have been in a bottle. It should have been left in the cask another 30 years just to try to get something better. Most people guessed the age at 3 months and frankly I think they were being nice. Bad. Just terrible.
7/100
Scotch review #1348, Speyside review #366, Whisky Network review #2020
tomoderawhisky.ca 