WELCOME TO THE CURRENT WHISKY OF THE MONTH
Christmas Cake & Dark Chocolate etc…SMWC – June 2026
A decade in the making. Worth every year. Exclusive to Members!
This is a 10-year-old single malt from an unnamed Speyside distillery — let’s just say Elgin has some very talented neighbours — matured for a full decade in Oloroso and Pedro Ximénez sherry casks, then bottled exclusively for SMWC members at a commanding 58.7% ABV. No chill filtration. No dilution. Just pure, unapologetic sherry-soaked magnificence. The nose alone will stop you in your tracks — sweet, fruity, and so irresistibly good you’ll want to linger there before you even take a sip. On the palate, it’s viscous and rich with wave after wave of chocolate-coated dates, while the finish stretches on long and chewy in the most satisfying way imaginable. This is the kind of dram that makes guests go quiet, then immediately ask what it is.
Christmas in July just got a whole lot more delicious.
We know it’s June. But hear us out — because this month’s SMWC exclusive is so undeniably festive, so magnificently indulgent, that we simply couldn’t wait until December to share it with you. Meet the whisky that wears its heart (and its entire flavour profile) on its sleeve: Christmas Cake & Dark Chocolate & Medjool Dates & Cinnamon & Sherry Casks & Cask Strength & SMWC. Yes, that’s the actual name. Yes, it’s exactly that good.
Crafted by the people who do things differently.
Behind this bottle is Atom Brands — the brilliant minds also responsible for That Boutique-y Whisky Company and Master of Malt — and their “&Whisky” range blender Sam Simmons, whose approach is concept-first, flavour-forward, and utterly uncompromising. You might remember the incredible Darkness 16yo Benrinnes PX Cask we released with Atom back in 2023 — if you were lucky enough to snag one, you already know what these guys are capable of. This is that same pedigree, dialled up to cask strength.
This one has our initials on it. Literally.
This bottling was created exclusively for SMWC — it’s even got our initials right there on the label. Limited allocation, cask strength, age-stated, and exclusive to members. A 10-year-old sherry bomb at this quality and price point is genuinely rare in today’s market, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. Don’t be the one explaining to a friend why you missed it.
The blender behind Atom Brands’ “&Whisky” range is Sam Simmons, Atom’s long time Head of Whisky and the creative lead for all whisky development across the company. The “&Whisky” lineup – blends such as Seaweed & Aeons & Digging & Fire, Abandon & Whisky, Smoke & Whisky, and others – is very much his playground: concept driven, flavour first, and built around the idea that blended whisky can be bold, characterful, and story rich rather than safe or generic.
This month we’re featuring one of Atom’s ‘&Whisky’ bottlings. Hardcore, no-nonsense bottlings featuring a simple tasting profile as the name. They do a heavily peated and heavily sherried range and this one sits firmly in the latter! The ‘Christmas cake & Dark chocolate & Medjool dates & Cinnamon & Sherry Casks & Cask Strength &… … SMWC’ – is exactly what it sounds like. A 10 Year Old, CASK STRENGTH celebration of decadent sherry maturation from an unnamed Speyside distillery.
EVERY MALT OF THE MONTH ORDER GET’S A CHANCE TO WIN A BOTTLE OF ARDNAMURCHAN 2016 OLOROSO AUSTRALIAN EXCLUSIVE!
OUR TASTING NOTES
Nose: So sweet and fruity you just can’t help but savour the glorious aromas for a few seconds before diving in. It’s just that good on the nose!.
Palate: Lovely and viscous with masses of chock coated dates
Finish: Long, chewy, extremely satisfying.
Look – the label tells exactly what’s in the bottle. Why re-invent the wheel! It’s a beautifully luscious whisky with HUGE, classic sherry flavours, wonderfully viscous mouthfeel and a mammoth amount of sweet fruity num nums. There’s surprisingly little pepper on the palate for a fully French oak matured whisky too. Wow – those aforementioned dates really come through in the palate and stretch into the immensely chewy finish. This really is a mouth-watering, extremely easy to drink and highly chewable sherry-bomb that I guarantee will knock the socks off any friend or guest who’s lucky enough to have you pour them one!
THE MEMBERS EXTRA WHISKY
A 58.8% cask strength, 11 year old, Speyside dram that is smoky, fruity, wine‑kissed, and wonderfully drinkable!
FROM ATOM BRANDS
We believe in balance. We believe the contents of this bottle are complex and carefully crafted. We believe that the outside needn’t be any of these things.
Believe Responsibly!
ABOUT ATOM BRANDS
Atom Brands sits in a fascinating space within the UK spirits world: part independent bottler, part liquid innovation lab, and part brand building engine. As the product development arm of the wider Atom Group – the same umbrella that includes Master of Malt and Maverick Drinks – they specialise in creating, sourcing, and bottling spirits that are deliberately unconventional, flavour forward, and often playfully packaged. Their philosophy is built around making liquids “the best they can possibly be” without chasing price points or trends, a stance they state explicitly in their brand DNA.
Where Atom becomes especially interesting for rum and whisky fans is through its That Boutique-y labels – including That Boutique-y Rum Company and That Boutique y Whisky Company – which operate very much in the indie bottler tradition: sourcing casks from distilleries around the world, releasing small batches, and leaning into transparency and storytelling. Their rum portfolio also includes the Ableforth’s line, with the cult favourite Rumbullion! spiced rum.
Atom Brands’ broader portfolio stretches well beyond rum and whisky, with award winning gins like Bathtub Gin and the world’s first independent gin bottler, That Boutique-y Gin Company, reinforcing their reputation as a disruptive, trend spotting force in UK craft spirits.
