Scotch Malt Whisky Society

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society began in Edinburgh in 1983, when a group of friends shared a cask bought directly from a distillery. It grew into a members' club with venues in Edinburgh and London and partner branches around the world. It is owned by The Artisanal Spirits Company.

The Society is an independent bottler: it buys casks of whisky from distilleries across Scotland and beyond, and bottles them under its own name. Each bottling comes from a single cask and is usually released at cask strength, without chill filtration or added colouring. Many casks are moved into a different cask from the Society's own stock for a further period of maturation before bottling.

Instead of naming the distillery, each label carries a code such as 29.300: the first number stands for the distillery and the second for the cask. Bottles also carry a playful descriptive name and tasting notes. Our catalogue includes casks from Laphroaig, Caol Ila, Bunnahabhain, Highland Park, Springbank, Macallan, Aultmore and the closed Dallas Dhu distillery.

Because every cask is a one-off, releases sell out and do not return. Buyers will also see seasonal and event bottlings, such as Winter Solstice and festival releases, and rarer editions where the distillery itself is named on the label.