Sherry January

 

The full line-up

Club chairman James started off the year for us with a selection of half a dozen sherried drams.

Decadent Drams 17yo

He aimed at six whiskies with full sherry maturation, although due to some slightly unclear labelling it ended up as five plus one that was a sherry finish. Three dry, three sweet, and five of the six were independently bottled.

The opening whisky was The Teuchter, a 17-year-old expression from Decadent Drams. Described as a modern Highland, James told us this was likely to be a Tomatin.

We got Christmas pudding and dark chocolate from this, some real classic sherry whisky flavours. It tasted fuller and stronger than you might have thought, and some thought it was a bit astringent. Liquorice came through as well. A solid sherry bomb of an opener, this was 46% and cost £65.

Tormore 10yo

Next a 10-year-old bottle of Tormore, a distillery now part of the Elixir empire created by the founders of the Whisky Exchange. This was a full maturation in cream sherry, although James confirmed this was not necessarily an old cask of Harvey's Bristol Cream.

There were pear drops and sherbet, definitely not as juicy as the opening whisky. There was some discussion in the group as to whether we were getting any of the creaminess. A dry, shorter finish. The nose and texture were very nice, but the taste wasn't quite as strong we didn't feel. Other tasting notes included hints of something floral, citrus peel and spice. This was 48% and we paid £55.

SMWS Mortlach

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society provided dram number three, an 18-year-old Mortlach. Much excitement in the room at the presentation of a dram from this distillery, often tough to get hold off at an affordable price. We paid £125 for this particular bottle, matured in oloroso sherry, and called Behold the Beast.

Ooft! This was certainliy chewy. Tannin on the finish. Very long, but maybe with a hint of bitterness in there too. Certainly very dry. Better with water, some in the room felt. It certainly was able to take water ok, as you might expect given the 54.3% ABV.

Clydebuilt 12yo

Half-time gave us a chance to refill our glasses downstairs at the Seven Oaks, and we were back for another sherried trio.

Clydebuilt was the brand name of whisky number four, and under the label it was probably a Benrinnes, bottled by the Ardgowan distillery. Aged in a dry manzanilla, coming in at a hefty 61.1%.

It didn't feel as strong as that, and the many flavours didn't get swamped by that strength. We got a maritime vibe with some sea salt, along with the creaminess of cream soda and ice cream. Some felt it took water well, while others said they thought a drop or two actually dulled the taste a bit too much. One last random tasting note: dolly mixtures! It cost £80.

Deanston 12yo

Dram five was the odd one out, a 12-year-old Deanston that was only finished in a moscatel port pipe rather than fully matured.

This was very unexpected on the palate. Oaky, a bit rough, with a hint of sandpaper. We also got some wood and candlewax. Actually on the sweet side as these things go, some were a bit on the fence about it. But on the other hand, this is a popular brand with many club members and at £55 for a 55.8% whisky, it was certainly affordable.

Glen Garioch 27yo

James has a particular feeling for Glen Garioch so that's where we were going for the sixth and final whisky. A 27-year-old bottled by Thompson Bros, at £195. But as James told us, "they don't often miss" and Glen Garioch arguably shines a bit better when bottled by an indie.

This was matured in a fino cask, and didn't have the colour we might have expected from such a long maturation. Nevertheless it's quite a delicate sherry, so even at this age it made some sense. The nose was superb although some felt the palate didn't quite deliver on it. The ABV on this was 49.3%.

Which brought us to the dram of the night voting. All except the Tormore got at least one vote, as ever a sign of strength in depth at any tasting.

But the clear winner was the SMWS Mortlach with 16, ahead of the Clydebuilt and Decadent Drams offerings in second and third.

Thanks to James for putting on such a great opening tasting of 2026, to all club members and guests for attending and to the Seven Oaks for hosting us once again.