Douglas Laing, the Independent bottlers, has been building upon their regional malts brand success in the last year. First there were the 5 regional malts, Big Peat, Scallywag, Timorous Beastie, Rock Oyster and The Epicurean along with three Cask Strength variants: Big Peat X-mas, Scallywag CS and Rock Oyster CS. But in the last year, we’ve seen a wave of limited editions with age statements. It started with Timorous Beastie 21 & 40 (note to self: post the review already!) and then came Scallywag 13 Year Old which is the subject of today’s review. There is also a duo of 18 Year Old that were now released, Timorous Beastie 18 (Yes, another one in the series) and Rock Oyster 18 which I hope to review in the not too far future.

The Scallywag theme is Sherried Speyside, based on Glenrothes, Macallan and Mortlach. I liked the basic Scallywag and the Cask Strength edition, so will the 13 yo stay true to the tradition?

Douglas Laing Scallywag 13 Year Old (46%, £53.95/€69,99)

Nose: Velvety sweet lightly dried fruit, sultanas, strong vanilla and a malt porridge so must be some American oak in there. Slowly a rich and deep milk chocolate note shows up coupled with nutmeg and a dash of cinnamon. 

Palate: Spicy! White pepper, oak spices, less sweet than the promise of the nose, sweet dried fruit with a bit of sour berries, milk chocolate and lots of dates.

Finish: I’d say it’s mostly short with a light dried fruit and bitter chocolate, but there’s lingering oak spiciness in the throat so lets call it short-medium finish?

Thoughts: Glad to report that the 3rd member in the Scallywag family stayed true to the tradition and still delivers good sherried experience. It’s sherried yet not a sherry bomb with lightness and freshness. A very good all year round sipper.