All it took was a strange word and a stranger distillery for Hamish to take a punt on the lesser-seen Balmenach, arguably one of the most obscure - despite its scale and cracking, weighty malt.

Wally takes some time with Torabhaig’s latest in the Legacy Series; the sherry cask influenced Cnoc Na Moine. While he’s at it he dips into a little Scots Gaelic revival history.

The mule network kicks in to share mature Union Distillery malt with Ainsley in Paris and Wally in Scotland. Both tear into a surprising and well-priced 16yo cracker from Brazil.

It’s been said malt and virgin oak don’t work. Broddy grabs a Glen Garioch and a Deanston Cask Strength for a side by side. There’s a clear winner, even if is scoring is a little less clear on this one.

We all love a bargain, but Nick takes extra pleasure when this Costco Kirkland Islay bargain punches above its weight and proves a popular choice for befuddling his blind tasting pals.

Fergus shares one of his summertime permashelf bottles; Compass Box’s Orchard House. He also offers one or two others that match it quite well, especially alongside a fruity IPA.

Tyree returns. We cracked his sarcophagus, dusted him down and set him upon some Campbeltown bottles that were awaiting his attention. As usual, no punches are pulled.

Upon discovering Borders’ under-the-radar inaugural release for £35, Fletch gets excited, but is immediately disappointed and takes a moment to offer some ‘feedback’. Oh dear.

In celebrating their local wildlife, Ardnamurchan decided to fly with the Midgie. So despite bearing the name of Scotland’s most hated creature, it still proves popular as a swarm of us gather to review it.

Prompted by the team, Wally reconnects with Linkwood, and this Thompson Bros 13yo makes Wally contemplate just how much trust revolves around the Whiskyverse, and why it’s vital.

There’s not only some whisky and casks up for sale, but an entire distillery too. It’s been making malt for 20 years and there’s little interest. Ainsley and Earie investigate.

Justifying his love of Linkwood, Murdo lines up four differently matured takes on its malt, all indies and all teenagers. One in particular has him demand this Speysider be celebrated more.

Trying to uncover the difference between ‘cask strength’ & ‘batch strength’ Paisley finds she doesn’t have it all figured out. She also finds a banger of a Kilchoman.

A brand new whisky appears, from a brand new Lowland distillery, and Wally barely noticed it. Fully natural and £45 too. Time to have a look into Edinburgh’s whisky renaissance.

Drummond takes a deep dive; what is Bere Barley and why are Bruichladdich using it? He then sips it against his 2014 Islay Barley to see if it’s worth the extra cash. Interesting indeed.

Looking ahead to a wet summer and thinking of summers past, Dougie wanders on to wonder why Lindores hasn’t caught fire with the exciter crowd just yet. He offers two banging examples of why it should.

Prepare for a dose of FOMO as Wally waxes lyrical about another banger from Glengyle’s Kilkerran. He says, despite all the defiance and fighting to get there - they’ve released their best yet.

Becoming ever more frustrated by his state’s draconian controlled liquor laws, Ogilvie steps up his creativity, employing child labour to snag an excellent SMoS Craigellachie.

Murdo finds an ‘interesting’ whisky in this 20yo Inchgower but also shares an ‘interesting’ business model which understandably, prevents him from shopping local.

While hearing about an absolute cracker of a lesser-seen Miltonduff, we get to know some secrets about Murdo and his other passions beyond what fits in a Glencairn. Fascinating.