Glen Scotia Double Cask Rum Cask Finish Campbeltown Single Malt Scotch Whisky 46%

Campbeltown was a harbour town before it was a whisky town. The ships that carried whisky out came home with other things in the hold, and rum was part of that trade. Putting a Campbeltown malt into demerara casks is therefore less contrived than it sounds.

The expert's description

Glen Scotia Double Cask Rum Cask Finish is a Campbeltown Single Malt Scotch Whisky matured in bourbon casks with a finishing period in demerara rum casks, bottled at 46%.

Demerara rum comes from Guyana and is heavier and more molasses-driven than the light rum of Barbados or Cuba. The casks therefore add dark sweetness and a clear syrupy note rather than bright tropical fruit, and that suits the oily Glen Scotia spirit well. The whisky is neither chill filtered nor coloured and carries no age statement.

Rum and whisky share more than you might think. Both mature in oak, both take colour and spice from the cask, and a used rum cask has already given up most of its sharpness by the time the whisky moves in. What remains is sugar cane as a warm undertone rather than a dominant flavour.

Tasting notes

Nose

Dark melted sugar and molasses, with banana, toasted coconut and ripe peach. The maritime note sits under the sweetness and only becomes clear after a couple of minutes.

Palate

Full and oiled. Caramel, brown sugar and tropical fruit, balanced by a light peat smoke and a touch of spice. The sweetness is warm rather than cloying.

Finish

Short to medium. Maritime nuances take over as the sweetness falls away, and the close is dry and spiced.

Specifications

Name: Glen Scotia Double Cask Rum Cask Finish Campbeltown Single Malt Scotch Whisky 70 cl 46%
Distillery: Glen Scotia
Region/Country: Campbeltown, Scotland
Type: Campbeltown Single Malt Scotch Whisky
ABV: 46%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: Bourbon casks with a finishing period in demerara rum casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Natural colour: Yes
Edition: Double Cask Rum Cask Finish
EAN no.: 5016840261216

Flavour profile

Tropical · Sweet · Maritime · Lightly peated · Spiced

Did you know?

West Highland Malt Distillers bought Glen Scotia in 1919 and went bankrupt around five years later. The distillery changed hands several times in that period, and each new owner inherited a plant that was harder to run than the year before.

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Frequently asked questions about Glen Scotia Double Cask Rum Cask Finish

What is demerara rum, and why are those casks used?

Demerara rum comes from Guyana and is made largely on old wooden stills, which gives a heavy, molasses-driven rum. The casks carry that dark sweetness across into the whisky, where lighter rum casks from Barbados, say, would have given brighter, more tropical fruit.

How does it differ from the standard Double Cask?

The standard Double Cask finishes in Pedro Ximénez sherry casks and comes out dark and raisin-sweet. The Rum Cask Finish goes tropical with molasses, banana and coconut. The base maturation in bourbon casks is the same, but the final direction is entirely different.

Is it sweet?

Yes, but at the warm end rather than the cloying one. The rum casks give brown sugar and molasses, while the salt and light smoke from the spirit pull the other way. That balance is a large part of the point of the bottling.

Is there smoke in it?

A little. The Glen Scotia standard range is largely unpeated, but there is a light smoke note in the spirit that comes through more clearly beneath the dark sweetness. To compare Scottish styles, browse our Scotch Whisky selection.

Why is there no age on the bottle?

Because the batch is assembled by profile rather than by years. The bottling is part of the permanent Glen Scotia range, where the blender uses whichever casks suit the expression the release is meant to have.

How is it best enjoyed?

Neat, at room temperature. At 46% it carries without water, and the chill from ice shuts down the tropical fruit. If you want to try it in a drink, it works surprisingly well in a whisky sour, where the lemon cuts through the sweetness.

Who does it suit?

Someone who likes Scotch but wants something other than sherry and vanilla. It is also a good call if the recipient drinks rum and is to be introduced to single malt from a recognisable angle.