The Scotch Malt Whisky Society

I think Edinburgh has spoiled me — I was expecting a lot more from this venue. Old school décor with cosy lamp lighting perhaps. Or even something more modern and edgy. Anything more than the very plain room we found at the top of the stairs here. It has a bar counter on the left hand wall, two sofas in the centre for a lucky 4 people, then a handful of plain tables and chairs around the edge. Sure the small size keeps it nicely intimate and relaxed, but there’s zero personality to the setting really.
The main attraction of this place though is the whisky, and on that front you can’t fault them, nor the knowledge of the clever folks behind the bar. You won’t spot your fave bottle on the shelf here; it’s all single-​cask, single malt whiskies from distillieries all over Scotland (and a few elsewhere) with the SMWS coded labelling and some ridiculous names to disguise them. But the menu is really helpfully split into flavour types that will be familiar to any whisky drinker and some of you might even be able to guess the distillery. If you want to cheat the codes are all on google too! Even if you’re a whisky newbie that’s been dragged along by a member, you’ll be able to use the handy tasting notes or a quick chat with the person behind the bar to find something to suit your tastes.
The lovely lady I chatted to really knew her stuff (and seems to have an incredible day job), and after I boldly ordered a heavily peated one she quite rightly pointed out that if I was having more than one (which we were) I should probably get that one last, as I wouldn’t be able to taste the others afterwards. She guided me towards ‘A Comforting Hug in a Mug’ which was supposed to have tropical fruit notes but I got more caramel. After that I had the heavily peated one from the very back of the menu too which needed a good few pipette drops of water so as not to annihilate my tastebuds. Each table has a water jug and pipette for you to add to your own taste.
A warning regarding prices — or lack of! There are none on the menu which is a worrying sign in itself and don’t expect high street prices as some of these can be quite rare — I’d hope they’d warn me if I ordered something that was £50 a measure though! We ended up paying £65 for 7 drams — our most expensive one was £13ish and cheapest was £6. Best to ask if you’re unsure.
If you’re not a member you need to find one to take you in — they can take in 3 guests at a time. If you are a member I highly recommend you go visit the gorgeous SMWS building in Edinburgh to see what the London outpost is missing in terms of atmosphere.

Holy smokes! And peat! Sea spray, and more flavors than I can identify. Thanks to Moray for inviting me in… I can’t imagine even trying without an expert guide. There’s so much to choose from my brain stalled.
Comfortable and cozy, it’s a church of whiskey. Thank you Jesus, thank you lord (to quote Mick Jagger).

Always good for a quiet dram. Small but cozy.

Oh man… great staff, great Scotch, great lamb burgers. Who could ask for anything more?

SMWS boasts an amazing selection of scotch. Were it not for the deft guidance of Kevin L., I surely would’ve been swallowed up by choice! The staff, engaged and friendly, assist in navigating the extensive menu to the utmost. One feels very taken care of here.
There are tables, chairs, and sofas arranged in an attractive fashion. SMWS felt a bit like relaxing in a very tidy lounge-​y café. If I hadn’t moved, then I would have become a member!
Bonus: Anchor (Steam) Porter!

Being a member of the SMWS, and having the good fortune to live in Edinburgh, I found the SMWS tasting rooms in London somewhat lacking in comparison.
The food at Greville Street is great, as is the selection of whiskies, they stock some excellent beers as well. My clients that I took there were even suitably impressed with the exclusivity of the ‘private club’ I had taken them to… but it’s not a patch on Edinburgh’s Queen Street venue, let alone the Vaults in Leith.
There is not a single thing that you can say against the Greville Street venue, other than it hasn’t got the grandeur, the scale or the atmosphere of the Edinburgh venues.
[edit] Don’t forget your membership card, you will need it to open the door.

A comprehensive back-​shelf of pure whisky joy. Whilst the offerings at SMWS might appear daunting to the beginner, the fact it’s a members’ club suggests that there’s a lesser chance the first-​time whisky sampler will find themselves plonked in front of the epic selection without anyone to guide them. And if all else fails, the bar staff really know their onions and are happy to make suggestions based on your mood & palate. In addition to the wall of single-​cask whisky, there’s also an excellently formed beer selection, and some grrrrrrrrrrrreat food as well! Thankfully it’s not all learn your way as you go with the whisky the society also run tutored tastings throughout the year which you can book on to (most are also open to non-​members to book), for varying levels of whisky expertise. Just a quick word of explanation about the spirits: they’re single-​cask bottlings, so you won’t see any labels you’d recognise. Each bottle has a unique combination of smell, taste, and finish, and will perhaps conjure up all sorts of personal memories which you might associate with the sensations. It’s lots of fun, especially reading the verbose notes on the bottle and then tasting it and finding Hey wow, that DOES taste like pickled onion!, or whatever. It’s a little quiet in the clubrooms, so it’s not really somewhere to go for a blinding night out, but it’s definitely a nice place to go & meet people for a chat, and to consider a dram or two.

As a rule; I dislike exclusive members clubs, too stuffy and cliched for my egalitarian self. But this place is an exception. It is exclusive, but only in that it excludes those who think whisky is something you mix ginger ale with, but even then, they have a carefully selected range of excellent beer and soft drinks AND Square Mile Coffee made on a beautiful little La Marzocco GS3 (I own a café!).
They do have a couple of rules that I do like though: no mobiles (yes!) and although I’ve never seen it happen, I’m sure that if you ask for a mixer, you’ll be politely defenestrated.
Right, the whisky: I have never encountered a place where the staff know their product so well. They HAVE to, as all the labels are generically numbered with weirdly evocative descriptions that, apart from region, give only vague clues as to the distillery. No Johnny Blue label here, no no no! No trends or flashy labels, just excellent, single barrel whisky and staff that know it well enough to suggest one that the father in-​law will give you a big pat on the back for choosing!
Oh, and Friday is ‘red dram’ day. Whiskys are all priced by colour and on Friday they’re all at the second-​lowest price point (except for the very most expensive ones).

The fact that I went here for a (refined) stag party and its taken me ages to write a review should be taken a massive compliment. I fully intended to write something the next day but the whiskies we were given were so good I had to have quite a few (at least six I think…) and couldn’t get move off the sofa.
We chose to go to a scotch whisky and curry tasting. Four drams (large shots) of different whiskies, a tiffin selection from Namaste Spice to compliment them and beer to wash everything down. We went though the classy main bar, up to a special private room — designed to comfortably accommodate 12 and with a special wipe-​clean wall so the whisky expert could draw out explanations.
Each of the whiskies were specially chosen for their individual tastes and character. The expert was on hand to explain everything: how they were made, how to taste them and what to look for. All were above 60% abv too — making them very dangerous.
At this stage of the night, my memory begins to get hazy so I can’t quite remember the intricacies of the tastings — I know adding a little water to dilute the whiskey makes a massive difference and that all the drams were very different (and all great to drink) but the locations and subtlety was lost on me.
That said, my enjoyment of the night enough that I would definitely come back and sample enough so that I could remember what it was I liked.

I don’t have enough wonderful adjectives to describe what a great place this is. The location is perfect, the setting ideal for tasting and enjoying whiskey with your friends, and above all the staff was absolutely on top of their game.
Two of my friends are members and invited me to come out after a long day at work. I couldn’t have asked for a better time. We tasted about 16 drams of different single malts and had some great food they send up from the Bleeding heart pub below. Darren and Charlotte were both superior in their service and helped us in our selections and also keeping us topped up on water, food, and whiskies.
They even have a meeting room upstairs that can be rented and my company has used it several times for client engagements and sales events. I look forward to doing the same with my clients on my next trip in.
On my last visit I purchased two bottles of outstanding scotch to take home with me and some tasting glasses. Sadly one of the glasses broke in my luggage but the rest made it home in tact. I can’t wait to return to London to enjoy this experience again.

Like Groucho Marx, I’m not one for memberships, or exclusive clubs but I make an exception here if only for the fantastic whisky on offer.
If you don’t really enjoy whisky, move along because this place won’t interest you. If you love whisky then this place is as close to nirvana as you’re likely to find in London.
Single malt bottlings from single casks are available here, all with a secretive code to prevent advertising the distillery but the staff will happily inform you of its origins — or you can download a guide after a quick google search. The whiskies are amazing. Every whisky region in Scotland is represented here as well as bourbons from the States and whiskies from Japan.
It all comes down to whether or not you like whisky. If you do, the membership is a no-​brainer and it comes with a free bottle. The venue is nice because there is no music and can be a quiet and cozy place to socialise with a friend or two. On occasion it can get more crowded and boisterous when somebody is trying to impress a business colleague or somebody who just doesn’t seem to appreciate the quality a nice, relaxed atmosphere offers. Fortunately that is the rare occasion.
I absolutely love this place. It’s opened my eyes to many great whiskies and I won’t let my membership lapse.
If you visit on Friday it’s ‘red ribbon’ day where most drams are a fixed £5.