Latest News
Kitchen Chat and more…
Kitchen Chat and more…
Many whisky lovers give thanks to the sherry producers when they sip a sherry-matured whisky. However, how many of us know what sherry is and how many types of sherry there are in the market? Learning about sherry is fascinating, and that’s why we are here to give a brief introduction to sherry and the types of sherry in the market.
Sherry is a fortified wine produced in three areas of Spain’s ‘sherry region’. Located in the province of Andalucia, the three regions are Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlúcar de Barrameda and El Puerto de Santa María. These three regions form a sort of a triangle on the map, with Sanlúcar de Barrameda on the top western part, Jerez de la Frontera in the central and El Puerto de Santa María at the southern part. The soil around these areas are chalk or limestone based, and provide the perfect climate for growing grapes are suitable for making sherry.
Did you know that the word “sherry” came from the British trying to pronounce Jerez and failed to do so?
Sherry producers use three types of grapes to make the delicious fortified wine, namely Palomino grape, Pedro Ximénez and Moscatel. Palomino is the primary source, and interestingly, this grape variety is highly unknown in other parts of the world. However, it is a crucial grape variety to the making of sherry. Pedro Ximenez and Moscatel are typically sweeter in nature and are different from Palomino. The sherry types they produce are vastly different from the ones made from the Palomino.
There are many sherry types but here are the main ones:
Producers use different methods to make the different kinds of sherry, and it is no surprise that each of them has a different taste!
There are two basic styles of sherry – dry and sweet.
Within the dry category, there are two ways of ageing the fortified white wine, which is what sherry is!
The first way is through the use of flor (pronounce as ‘floor’). Flor is a type of yeast that forms a thin layer (about 2 cm thick) on top of the sherry wine as it begins to age. It prevents the wine from oxidation so that the sherry is aged without the aid of oxygen. Flor yeast is quickly killed by high alcohol content, however, so flor-aged sherry does not have an abv above 15%. Flor-aged sherry produces the “Fino” and “Manzanilla” sherries.
The second method is non-flor-ageing, which means that oxidation happens during the ageing process. The wines produced by this method are higher in abv, as they are not limited to the 15% alcohol content. Hence, sherry types made using the oxidation method are stronger in both flavours and alcohol content. Non-flor-ageing sherry produces the “Amontillado” and “Oloroso” sherries.
Sweet sherry typically means the addition of sugar. However, producers differentiated them between “naturally sweet” or “artificially sweet”.
Naturally-sweet sherry typically means using the sweeter variety of grapes such as Pedro Ximenez or Moscatel instead of Palomino grapes to make the sherry. The production for this type of sherry is slightly different as the grapes are harvested much later and dried in the sun to extract more sugar before being pressed. They are called Vino dulce natural in Spanish.
Artificially sweetened sherry is usually a blend of dry sherry with sweet wines or grape syrup. For example, dry sherry made from Palomino grapes are mixed with Pedro Ximenez or Moscatel to create a blend of sweet sherry. Alternatively, producers add arrope, a highly concentrated syrup made of grape juice to the dry sherry to make it sweet. This type of sherry is called Vino generoso de Licar.
We know the importance of sherry casks in the whisky industry. We need them to mature our favourite whiskies, which is why learning about sherry is essential. If we appreciate sherry and learn to drink the wine, we may help to boost demand and encourage the sherry producers to increase production. That will, in turn, produce more sherry casks for our beloved whisky to mature in! See, it is a win-win situation for all!
So, my dear readers, buy some sherries and share it with your whisky-loving friends! After all, we need to do our part to help whisky producers lower the cost of sherry casks so that they can pass the savings to us!
What do you think?
We spoke of the brief history of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) in our previous article, and today, we are exploring the way they choose their casks as well as the interesting codes of their bottles. If you noticed the unique codes for each SMWS bottling and wonder what it all means, let us explore that together.
Before we delve into codes, let us first look at how SMWS chooses its casks. SMWS appoints a “Tasting Panel” to select what casks to buy and bottle. The society acquires casks only after the tasting panel approved of the cask. In other words, the bottles that we bought off the website are tried and tested by the experts from the tasting panel.
The tasting panel consists of Society representatives who are either directly involved in the whisky industry or those who proved their knowledge of whisky. Besides tasting and approving casks to buy, the tasting panel also gives each expression an unusual and descriptive name. After their 25th anniversary in 2008, SMWS added mouth-watering tasting notes to depict the flavours of the whisky. An example of the unique name will be “Drunken Cherry Coconut Ice Cream”. Someone who is drinking this expression is likely to find cherry and coconut notes in the whisky, and the liquid will be creamy to taste.
After choosing the cask, the society bottles it and give the outturn of each expression an unique two-part numerical “identity code”. The first part of the code represents the distillery and the second part indicates the number of cask bottled from the said distillery. For example, 54.45 means the 45th cask acquired from distillery number 54. Every society bottling uses this numerical system. The reason behind this system is simple. Every single cask is different, and SMWS did not want whisky lovers to link the whisky to the distillery’s general profile before drinking it. By using a code, drinkers are more willing to try it without judging and in a way, makes every sip a blind tasting.
It is worthy to note that SMWS bottles grain whiskies as well as single malt whiskies. The grain whiskies are denoted by the prefix “G” in their cask number. There is also rum with the prefix “R” as well as American whiskey with the prefix “B”.
The List of SMWS’ Distillery Codes
The list of distillery codes grows ever longer with every new distillery that SMWS adds to its embrace. Here is a list of the codes that we know of.
Single Malt Whisky | SMWS Code |
Glenfarclas Distillery | 1 |
Glenlivet Distillery | 2 |
Bowmore Distillery | 3 |
Highland Park Distillery | 4 |
Auchentoshan Distillery | 5 |
Macduff Distillery (Glen Deveron) | 6 |
Longmorn Distillery | 7 |
Tamdhu Distillery | 8 |
Glen Grant Distillery | 9 |
Bunnahabhain Distillery | 10 |
Tomatin Distillery | 11 |
Benriach Distillery | 12 |
Dalmore Distillery | 13 |
Talisker Distillery | 14 |
Glenfiddich Distillery | 15 |
Glenturret Distillery | 16 |
Scapa Distillery | 17 |
Inchgower Distillery | 18 |
Glen Garioch Distillery | 19 |
Inverleven Distillery | 20 |
Glenglassaugh Distillery | 21 |
Glenkinchie Distillery | 22 |
Bruichladdich Distillery | 23 |
Macallan Distillery | 24 |
Rosebank Distillery | 25 |
Clynelish Distillery | 26 |
Springbank Distillery | 27 |
Tullibardine Distillery | 28 |
Laphroaig Distillery | 29 |
Glenrothes Distillery | 30 |
Isle of Jura Distillery | 31 |
Edradour Distillery | 32 |
Ardbeg Distillery | 33 |
Tamnavulin Distillery | 34 |
Glen Moray Distillery | 35 |
Benrinnes Distillery | 36 |
Cragganmore Distillery | 37 |
Caperdonich Distillery | 38 |
Linkwood Distillery | 39 |
Balvenie Distillery | 40 |
Dailuaine Distillery | 41 |
Tobermory Distillery (Ledaig) | 42 |
Port Ellen Distillery | 43 |
Craigellachie Distillery | 44 |
Dallas Dhu Distillery | 45 |
Glenlossie Distillery | 46 |
Benromach Distillery | 47 |
Balmenach Distillery | 48 |
St. Magdalene Distillery | 49 |
Bladnoch Distillery | 50 |
Bushmills Distillery | 51 |
Old Pulteney Distillery | 52 |
Caol Ila Distillery | 53 |
Aberlour Distillery | 54 |
Royal Brackla Distillery | 55 |
Coleburn Distillery | 56 |
Glen Mhor Distillery | 57 |
Strathisla Distillery | 58 |
Teaninich Distillery | 59 |
Aberfeldy Distillery | 60 |
Brora Distillery | 61 |
Glenlochy Distillery | 62 |
Glentauchers Distillery | 63 |
Mannochmore Distillery | 64 |
Imperial Distillery | 65 |
Ardmore Distillery | 66 |
Banff Distillery | 67 |
Blair Athol Distillery | 68 |
Glen Albyn Distillery | 69 |
Balblair Distillery | 70 |
Glenburgie Distillery | 71 |
Miltonduff Distillery | 72 |
Aultmore Distillery | 73 |
North Port Distillery | 74 |
Glenury Royal Distillery | 75 |
Mortlach Distillery | 76 |
Glen Ord Distillery | 77 |
Ben Nevis Distillery | 78 |
Deanston Distillery | 79 |
Glen Spey Distillery | 80 |
Glen Keith Distillery | 81 |
Glencadam Distillery | 82 |
Convalmore Distillery | 83 |
Glendullan Distillery | 84 |
Glen Elgin Distillery | 85 |
Glenesk Distillery | 86 |
Millburn Distillery | 87 |
Speyburn Distillery | 88 |
Tomintoul Distillery | 89 |
Pittyvaich Distillery | 90 |
Dufftown Distillery | 91 |
Lochside Distillery | 92 |
Glen Scotia Distillery | 93 |
Old Fettercairn Distillery | 94 |
Auchroisk (Singleton) Distillery | 95 |
Glendronach Distillery | 96 |
Littlemill Distillery | 97 |
Inverleven Distillery (Lomond) | 98 |
Glenugie Distillery | 99 |
Strathmill Distillery | 100 |
Knockando Distillery | 101 |
Dalwhinnie Distillery | 102 |
Royal Lochnagar Distillery | 103 |
Glenburgie Distillery (Glencraig) | 104 |
Tormore Distillery | 105 |
Cardhu Distillery | 106 |
Glenallachie Distillery | 107 |
Allt-a-Bhainne Distillery | 108 |
Miltonduff (Mosstowie) | 109 |
Oban Distillery | 110 |
Lagavulin Distillery | 111 |
Loch Lomond Distillery (Inchmurrin) | 112 |
Braeval Distillery (Braes of Glenlivet) | 113 |
Springbank Distillery (Longrow) | 114 |
Knockdhu Distillery (An Cnoc) | 115 |
Yoichi Distillery | 116 |
Cooley Distillery (unpeated) | 117 |
Cooley Distillery (peated) | 118 |
Yamazaki Distillery | 119 |
Hakushu Distillery | 120 |
Isle of Arran Distillery | 121 |
Loch Lomond Distillery (Croftengea) | 122 |
Glengoyne Distillery | 123 |
Miyagikyo Distillery | 124 |
Glenmorangie Distillery | 125 |
Springbank Distillery (Hazelburn) | 126 |
Bruichladdich (Port Charlotte) | 127 |
Penderyn Distillery | 128 |
Kilchoman Distillery | 129 |
Chichibu (Japan) | 130 |
Hanyu (Japan) | 131 |
Karuizawa (Japan) | 132 |
Westland Distillery (USA) | 133 |
Paul John (India) | 134 |
Grain Whisky | SMWS Code |
North British Distillery | G1 |
Carsebridge Distillery | G2 |
Caledonian Distillery | G3 |
Cameronbridge Distillery | G4 |
Invergordon Distillery | G5 |
Port Dundas Distillery | G6 |
Girvan Distillery | G7 |
Cambus Distillery | G8 |
Loch Lomond Distillery | G9 |
Strathclyde Distillery | G10 |
Nikka Coffey Grain (Japan) | G11 |
Nikka Coffey Malt (Japan) | G12 |
Chita (Japan) | G13 |
Dumbarton Distillery | G14 |
American Bourbon Whiskey | SMWS Code |
Heaven Hill | B1 |
Bernheim | B2 |
Rock Town | B3 |
F.E.W Distillery | B4 |
Rum | SMWS Code |
Port Morant (Jamaica) | R1 |
Demerara El Dorado (Guyana) | R2 |
Mount Gay (Barbados) | R3 |
Angostura (Trinidad) | R4 |
Appleton (Jamaica) | R5 |
We hope the list will help you to know more but do remember, do not judge the whiskies by the general characteristics of their distilleries, as it can be very different from what you expect. Instead, read the tasting notes and taste the whisky to find out if you love it!
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) landed on Singapore’s shores some time ago. It was a joyous moment for many of us as we finally get a chance to be a member of this esteemed whisky society. As we journey along with SMWS for these months, we discovered that not everyone knows how or when SMWS started. So, today, we are sharing a brief history of SMWS for all to enjoy.
When we speak of SMWS, we think of Phillip “Pips” Hills and his travels around the Scottish Highlands in the 1970s. Due to his experience of tasting whisky directly from the casks during his visits, he fell deeply in love with whisky. His experiences changed his life forever, especially after he convinced his whisky-loving friends to jointly buy a cask of whisky from Glenfarclas distillery in 1978.
As the years passed, the group expanded into a syndicate where more people joined the group and purchased casks together. As the members continued to grow, they bought and bottled more casks from different distilleries and distribute these bottles to all the subscribing members. After five years, the Society is large enough to purchase their first property – The Vault – in Leith. The Vault comes with a set of vaulted wine cellars said to be from the 12th century.
The year 1983 marked the closure of many whisky distilleries in Scotland. It was a low point in the history of whisky. Many great distilleries like Port Ellen, Glenugie and St Magdelene closed down in 1983. It was this year that the founding members of SMWS decided to open their membership to the wider public as they can finally welcome more members with their ownership of The Vault. Therefore, SMWS was founded in 1983, as it was the first year that the society opened its doors to the general public.
After the founding of SMWS in 1983, the society grew by leaps and bounds as more people joined the community. The Vault serves as the member’s second home, where several members’ rooms are available for use by only the members of SMWS. In 1996, the society launched a share scheme to purchase a second property in Greville Street, London. After that, SMWS bought a third property – a Georgian townhouse on Queen Street, Edinburgh in 2004. With three venues, the society grew strongly in numbers, and they purchase more casks than ever before. SMWS then caught the eyes of Glenmorangie PLC, which bought the society in 2004.
2008 marks the 25th anniversary of SMWS. The guiding members of SMWS decided to celebrate the occasion by redesigning the label to include more information and tasting notes on the front of the bottle. Things continue to run smoothly, and by 2015, SMWS was once again, acquired by private investors. SMWS remains as the property of these private investors today.
Only members of the society can purchase SMWS’ bottlings. Becoming a member is easy. Choose from the basic membership at SGD$140 or the membership pioneer at SGD$320. Both memberships come with the following benefits:
The membership pioneer has the additional exclusive welcome pack:
If you are happy to get the membership without the welcome pack, the basic membership is good enough for you to gain access to the SMWS bottlings. However, the exclusive welcome pack is choked full with goodies, so if you are keen to explore SMWS and have a deeper pocket, why not try the membership pioneer?
There are currently two SMWS member bars in Singapore – The Single Cask and The Wall SG. If you want to check out new bottlings from SMWS, visiting either bar will be a good choice for you to taste some excellent whiskies from SMWS. New members can also head over to The Single Cask to collect your membership card and pick up any bottles that you purchase online.
Members can access SMWS bars in other countries. Besides the three member-bars in the U.K, there are bars in Australia, Austria, Benelux, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Poland, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the U.S.A.
We hope to see more bottlings from SMWS coming into Singapore in the future as we move forward together as a nation to appreciate whisky. We believe that with SMWS coming onboard in Singapore, more people will get to try whiskies straight from the cask and at cask strength too!
In our next article, we will speak more of SMWS bottlings and the codes on their bottles.
11311 Harry Hines Blvd
Dallas, TX, United States
(555) 389 976
dallas@enfold-restaurant.com