This week was so busy and full of [other] whisky tastings that I didn’t get a chance to run through my own pairing. On Monday, I had a very interesting journey via Raasay’s cask strength bottlings from various barrels and peated malts. Tuesday, I powered through my “dry day of the week”. Sigh. Wednesday was a tasting of independent bottlings from Brave New Spirits Whisky of Voodoo across their latest range. Thursday, I received the new and exciting Lagavulin releases (including the much sought-after 11-year-old Offerman Edition), and now… now it’s Friday! So I go back to my advent calendar from Cask Explorers‘ Emerald Edition and pop open dram number two! Let’s get right into it, but first, we must have music! Now playing: Roni Size – Reprazent.

First up for tasting today is a dram of something called Spice King 12-Year-Old Highland and Islay, courtesy of Wemyss Malts. This is a blended malt bottled at a punchy 52.2% ABV, which I have never heard of before. I’ll admit, I’m not even sure that I recognize any other releases from this “independent whisky curator“, and there is something called The Hive, Peat Chimney, and Spice King in their core range. This is a limited release (of 5,000 bottles), with no chill filtration or added colouring, selling in shops for about £40. It’s more Highland on the nose than Islay, with the aromas of bananas coming through and just a hint of smoke somewhere in the background. I kind of wish there was more peat. It’s more floral than the Thompson Brothers SRV5 blended malt [which I will get to in a second] and surprisingly a little blunt (in a good way, because the SRV5 hits me with the alcohol, even at a lower ABV). It is unexpectedly smooth at 52.2% rolling in over my tongue with a wonderful oily richness of ex-bourbon-barrel candied sweet, ending in burnt heather, with more smoke than peat again, and a bit of that old-style slightly charred finish. Someone somewhere thinks that it’s a blend of Bunnahabhain and Highland Park. That kind of makes sense, and I have to admit, I like it!

The 8-year-old SRV5 (named after Station Road Vat 5, which is a 1200L charred and toasted oak vat) from Thompson Bros feels immediately younger, brighter, and more upfront in its delivery. It’s got a more peppery finish that lingers on for a very, very long time, but it’s somehow smeared with a cardboard aftertaste, which comes in waves, and I can’t decide whether I like that or not. I can’t pick up on any smoke here – there’s something very strong in the forefront that masks the rest, and I’ll need to come back to this to see if I can pick out what that is. This is a blended malt of North Highland, Islay and Speyside single malts, bottled at 48.5% with no chill filtration or added colouring. It’s nicely integrated and adequately diluted, but it doesn’t really knock my socks off, which, to be honest, is a bit expected at a very reasonable price of £35. Let’s return to the Spice King and see how it has held on. It’s definitely a rounder sip than the SRV5. It’s softer, again, surprising due to its higher ABV, and sweeter. It’s got a bitter finish on the very edge, but I don’t mind it at all. Now back to the SRV5, which feels just a little harsher, as if there is a bit of grain in it (Johnny Black style, if that’s your thing), but clearly, there isn’t any here. And that spice after glow stays with the finish for a very long time. I almost feel like these two bottles should exchange their names because the SRV5 out-spices the Spice King. If you like the artwork on the SRV5, you can check out more by Yu Kurahashi of Bar Tre, Hiroshima.

Well, there you have it, folks. A pairing of carefully selected blended (aka vatted) malts with age statements, which I could also justify in calling integrity bottlings, due to their uncompromised delivery, with no colouring or chill-filtration. If you’re looking for more of these without the added grain, be sure to check out Compass Box, which I have profiled a few times on Two Drams a Day [and more to come!]. In fact, I originally was going to compare the Spice King next to Compass Box Spice Tree, but I really wanted an age statement on a blended malt and a higher ABV. For me, I think the Spice King is the victor – it’s worth the extra five quid for the suave. But if you try the SRV5 out of this context, I’m sure you will enjoy it just as well! With that, I will proclaim the Spice King 12-year-old Highland and Islay Blended Malt as the winner of this round.