Generously_Paul
Scallywag Blended Malt
Blended Malt — Speyside, Scotland
Reviewed
February 8, 2019 (edited October 11, 2020)
When most people think about quality blended scotch they instantly think Compass Box, and rightfully so, but Douglas Laing is also putting together some great stuff as well. Here we have Scallywag, a malt blend using only Speyside single malts, namely Macallan, Mortlach and Glenrothes (any others are not named specifically). Matured in both sherry and bourbon casks, bottled at 46% ABV, chill filtered and most likely has colorant added making it an amber gold. I can confirm that it is chill filtered because I made my wife a whisky and water with it (about a 5:1 water to whisky ratio and 2 ice cubes) and even after 20 minutes it remained clear as apple juice.
The nose is full on sherry but not overly so, very Macallan-like or a more intense Famous Grouse. Red grapes, raisins and figs. Sherry oak, wood smoke (but not peat). Vanilla, semisweet chocolate, lots of fruitcake. Tobacco, leather, salty, raspberry chocolate. Definite signs of both well aged and youthful stock. After a little time the Mortlach worm tub profile starts to take form with those meaty/mineral notes. The Glenrothes components come in as well with a more honeyed profile. Honeysuckle, plums, melon rinds and dried apricots. Brown sugar, toffee, caramel and a malty biscuit note at the bottom of the glass.
The palate is sweet sherry and lots of spices, but not too spicy. Very light peat and wood smoke. Dark chocolate, tobacco and leather. Vanilla, allspice and pepper. It’s all Macallan at first, then more of a Glenrothes feel with a pop of citrus peel, stone fruits and honey, oak and biscuits. More of that Mortlach meaty/mineral funk from the nose. Cinnamon, nutmeg and lots of fruitcake.
A medium bodied mouthfeel that is a bit thin and creamy. Mouthwatering
The finish is long with sweet sherry, baking spices, fruitcake and dry.
When I first opened this blend I was not impressed. It seemed overly spicy for 46% and the Mortlach profile was too strong. There are only a handful of distilleries that use worm tubs that I actually like, Talisker, Edradour, Oban, Old Pulteney, Springbank to a lesser extent but they are growing on me, so that funk was just too much. It reminded me too much of Craigellachie which I am really not a fan of. The first half of the bottle was used for trading samples and once they were poured I let it sit a few months. Going back to it, things really improved. As I made my way towards the end of the bottle it really became a very solid dram. If you are a big Mortlach or Sprinkgbank fan and like sherried scotches then I would highly recommend this one, but I would say to work through it more quickly to maintain that profile. At $70 the price is a bit high, but I would say it still is worth it. A solid 4
Cheers
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@Generously_Paul Great review - I want this whisky right now! @PBMichiganWolverine This is the best article on the subject I've seen https://scotchwhisky.com/magazine/features/17775/worm-tubs-the-inside-story/
I see they have 13 yr and cask strength variants as well so flagged those to try one time.
Good review. :-) This one sounds right up my alley. I enjoyed their timerous beastie 18 and have Rock Oyster 18 and regular to try as well. I'll add this one to my list
@Generously_Paul you so missed your calling as distillery manager....
@PBMichiganWolverine a worm tub is a type of condenser. It’s connected to the Lyne arm and is usually, if not always, located on the outside of the distillery. It’s a giant wooden tub and the copper pipe is coiled or “wormed” inside it. Cold water is pumped through it to help facilitate the condensing of the alcohol vapors into liquids. The long run of copper means that it has more interaction and picks up more sulfuric notes. Conversely, most distilleries use a shell and tube style condenser. In that system there are multiple copper pipes encased in a larger outer shell which has cold water pumped through it. These are more efficient and cheaper to make and maintain. These have a shorter interaction time but can condense at the same rate or better
What’s a worm tub? How does that make it “funky”?