Review #250 - SMWS Distillery 64 Rare Release 'Luscious Velvet' - Mannochmore 15 Year

While most of the whiskies bottled by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) are single casks, there are occasionally some batch products, either in the form of a blend of casks from a single distillery, or a blend of distilleries. Our bottle is the former - it was created from several casks from distillery 64, the Society's code for Mannochmore, in celebration of the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival in 2023.

Mannochmore is a little-seen whisky - this Speysider has a limited number of official bottlings, mostly in the forms of a 12 year Flora & Fauna release, the occasional Diageo special annual release, and the infamous Loch Dhu 'black whisky,' which is colored with caramel to the point that it's entirely opaque and, quite literally, black liquid. Because of that, this single malt is easier to find via independent bottlers, although it isn't the most common distillery from them, either.

This 15 year old bottling titled 'Luscious Velvet' in the US market ('Viscous Velvet' in other markets) is a small batch of casks, which includes Spanish oak Oloroso hogsheads, American oak PX hogsheads, and other refill hogsheads. It yielded a little over 2,000 bottles; based on the emphasis on sherry maturation, we'll be looking for some sweet, fruity flavors.

SMWS Distillery 64 Rare Release 'Luscious Velvet' - Mannochmore 15 Year

Scotland/Speyside - Single Malt

Price Paid: USD 155 (2023)

Age Statement: 15 Years

Strength: 53.1% ABV

Cask Makeup: First fill Spanish oak ex-Oloroso hogsheads, first fill American oak ex-Pedro Ximenez hogsheads, refill hogsheads

Details: Not chill filtered, no color added; 2,119 bottles

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 4 times over 9 months; bottles at 100%, 70% (blind tasting), 60%, and 50% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a Glencairn glass each time, rested 10-15 minutes

Nose: Mature, polished, old oak - like antique furniture, slightly perfumed. Rich, with some syrupy sweet notes behind the oak, including fruits of pineapple, plum, pomegranate, and cherry; there are hints of chocolate and a whiff of wood smoke, too. Fruit compote and purple flowers are subtle accent flavors; the emphasis is on that polished oak.

Palate: Medium-thick mouthfeel - wow. Rich and diverse in sweet flavors. Tropical fruits of mango and pineapple; red fruits of raspberry, cherry, or blackberry; lots of old polished oak and fresh leather, as well as sweet cigarillos; hints of cocoa and perfume, too. There's a great velvety, creamy texture, and hints of spiced oak arrive at the back of the palate.

Finish: Old wood, syrup and polish, some sweet floral perfume. Fruits transition more to dried fruits like orange, prune, and cranberry; more baking spice like cardamom in this finish, as well as malty chocolate. Hints of wood smoke and sweet cinnamon linger; quite elegant, and medium-long in length.

Final Note: Maybe they should have named this bottling '15 going on 50' - this is by far the most mature tasting 15 year old single malt that we've tried. It's unusual for a 15 year old whisky to be labeled as 'Old and Dignified' by the Society (denoted by the rich red-colored label details), but it makes a bit more sense after tasting this bottle.

This was the first Mannochmore whisky that we had the chance to try, and while not all of them will live up to an experience like this, we'll definitely be looking for more ways to taste whisky from this distillery - more adventures into the IB world, then.

To sum it up - gorgeous, old-tasting whisky, more mature than it has any right to be. One of the rare whiskies that, after tasting it, we wish we could go back and pick up 2 or 3 more bottles for the original price, despite it being in excess of $150.

Our Average Rating: 9.0 / 10

In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.

Value Rating: 6.66