Once again, it’s that wonderful time of year when shops may have leftover Christmas stock in the form of whisky miniatures – a fantastic way to explore different whiskies without spending a fortune.
One of the sets that I received as a gift over the holidays was one containing three whiskies from the Tomatin Distillery, which is based on the edge of the Monadhliath Mountains, near Inverness, Scotland. The distillery site has history dating back to the 15th Century, but was formally set up in 1897.
The gift set contains a 50ml bottle of each of their 12, 15 and 18 Year Old whiskies (which is quite a recent line-up, as the 15 Year Old was only introduced in 2009).
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#1) Tomatin 12 Year Old (40%ABV)
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This whisky was introduced in 2003 and has been aged in 1st or 2nd fill American Oak casks, before being finished in sherry butts (for a minimum of six months).
Nose: Bread, yeast and oat cakes, with a little sea air and sherry, too. Mainly a surprisingly pleasant combination dough and oat cakes, though.
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Taste: Strong, savoury flavours from the outset; whilst its very smooth, even if you hold it in your mouth for a while, the flavours are potent and there’s a good warmth to it. The main flavours are of light wood and oat cakes, but there’s an intriguing, slightly bitter finish which is more vegetal.
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#2) Tomatin 15 Year Old (43%ABV)
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Introduced in 2009, the 15 Year Old has been aged in refill American Oak casks.
Nose: Light and distinctly creamy (just a touch of salted caramel or toffee), with malt, barley and wisps of smoke. There’s a breadiness to the creaminess, but nothing heavy.
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Taste: Again, wisps of smoke amongst a backdrop of clean, white wood and light citrus (mainly orange, but with hints of lemon). The flavour is quite “raw” at points, but there’s no burn. The finish is quite heavy on notes of hops and malt, with hints of chocolate.
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#3) Tomatin 18 Year Old (46%ABV)
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Introduced in 2006, this whisky is non-chill filtered and aged in refill American Oak casks, before being finished in Spanish Oloroso sherry butts.
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Nose: Lighter, softer and sweeter, but also stronger on the alcohol. Again, I get notes of faint sea air and the kind of fresh, slightly tart, dry fruitiness that you would get from a dry sherry. It finishes with notes of oats.
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Taste: Savoury and fresh, with a toffee-like mouthfeel that follows an initial burst of savoury notes. This has a surprisingly short flavour, which is predominantly made up of tart, dry sherry notes, and a lighter, sweet woodiness with highlights of dried fruit towards the end.
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In Conclusion
Whilst none of these whiskies were to my own personal tastes, I’m glad that I’ve tried the range and think that my Dad will be quite partial to the 15 Year Old, which was also my favourite of the three. This little gift set is an excellent, good-value way to try them (you can purchase it from The Whisky Exchange for around £17.25).
– Mrs. B.
Summer Fruit Cup 