Compass Box Tobias & The Angel

I thought I'd pick something decent for my 800th tasting which the Project Manager in me was like hmm ahead of schedule which is usually good but maybe not in this situation..anyhow I remembered I had a sample of this and mindful of @PBMichiganWolverine experiences with expensive bottles I handled the dram carefully and made sure no one drank it by mistake. It's a very nice drop, mellow light meadish peat. Very well integrated. Solid 4.25 which may have risen higher if I got a chance to work through a bottle.

Compass Box Tobias & The Angel Nose: this wonderful conundrum of sweet and savory. Faint smoke, vegetal peat, violets, pressed flowers, and floral malt. Salami, soy sauce reduction. Wasabi & soy sauce almonds. Soft oak. Notes of sherry and dark fruit start to work there way forward after a little time. Its just gorgeous and seductive....you just don’t want to pull away. It’s like a beach strewn with shells, the longer you linger the more treasure you know you will uncover. Palate: Exquisite. Soft delicate seduction. Nuance and complexity are the name of the game with the pedigree of its barrel ages controlling the show. Its a elegant balance of brine and sweet and savory. A touch of light honey and sweet malt dressed in sheer smoke. Rich floral, rose hips, bitter chocolate, almonds, the peat rolls in at the end more woody and earthy with a rich kick of gentle barrel spice. A kiss of velvety smoke ties it all up with a bow. Finish: sweet malt and smokey and lingers beautifully with a light touch of sour oak on the end.

So there’s a lesson to be learned here...I’ll let y’all readers figure out what that is. But the story goes like this: Being that this is such a pretty bottle, with classic artwork as the label, I had it sitting in my home office bookshelf, nestled nicely between Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Last week, we also had quite a few friends and family over, for celebrating Diwali. Now, I made available plenty of options for my guests—-red wine, white wine, two mid-tier safe single malts ( Balvenie 12 and Macallan Classic 2019) and even alcohol free cocktails using Seedlip. But my wife, who can’t tell the difference between Coors Light and a Macallan Genesis, thought this bottle of Compass Box Tobias would look so pretty sitting right behind the homemade samosas. She was right...looked damn pretty. But...who puts out a $400 bottle in the open as a free for all???!!! Needless to say, before I even realized what happened, someone opened it, and by the time I saw it, there was just a small few sips worth of a pour left. But those few sips were amazing. What you have here are two old single malts (Caol Ila and Clyneish , both I think over 30yrs or close to it). Smooth silky smoke threads through waxy fruit of apples and pears. Just a drop of water opens up a bit more smoke—-making this much more austere. As disheartening as it is...I’m glad I did get to try it. Interestingly—both the Balvenie and Macallan were left untouched and unopened.

So polished and smooth!! Take your time with this one and get to know it! There are many many layers to discover!! Perfection to say the least!!

Some of the best highland scotch blend I’ve ever tasted