Tomatin Decades

needs to sit a bit and open up, but when it does ... nice. tropical and fruity, with a slight hint of toasted marshmallow.

Tukholman vanhassa kaupungissa. Mahtava suutuntuma, tammea, pitkä

This was probably one of the better Tomatin bottles I’ve had at this point- and I’ve had quite a few. This is a NAS whisky, but not in the same terms as what we’ve grown to expect from a non-age statement: young whisky. This bottling takes Tomatin stock from 5 successive decades to make a truly memorable dram in honor of Tomatin’s master distiller/blender. There’s bits of whisky from the rebellious 60’s, disco 70’s, new wave 80’s, angst-ridden 90’s and the crapfest of music that was the 00’s in this bottle. And they collaborate to make beautiful music together. It was bottled at the 46% sweet spot, is NCF’d and has no added color. I believe my buddy Jason paid around $110 for this bottle. What a steal! The nose starts out with traditional sherry cask sweetness, but then a heavy dose of orchard and tropical fruits waft in along with a slight hint of peat and smoke. There’s that crazy bit of candle wax if you let it sit too long, but it doesn’t ruin anything. The palate reminds me of a sugary, chocolate breakfast cereal with a warm toffee and alcohol backbone. It’s that slight hit from the younger stock and ABV that keep this from being a 5-star dram, but damn it’s still close. This is still dessert in a glass. The finish is medium length, unfortunately, and that’s disappointing simply from the standpoint that I wanted this to keep going. It’s tropical and sweet, oily at first before turning a tad dry. It just needed to be longer. Either that, or I needed another dram to relive it all. Send more, @telex! Overall, I think I need to search this one out just to have a bottle on hand. This stuff is fantastic and I could finish off a hearty meal with a dram or two every day and be thoroughly satisfied. 4.75 stars, all day long. Great stuff. Cheers.

Excitement in the Christmas air. Wrapping up the day and the final presents. Poured myself a Tomatin. Why? Why not? An opening on the nose of honey, vanilla, tea and tropical fruits of pineapples and apricots. Another inhalation or two and caramel apple-crumb pie with a cinnamon spice sprinkle is taken in. Time blooms the nose and the aromas become more vibrant and alive. Draw a sip and the liquid taken in is sweet that turns spicy, all in a medium-light body. Brown sugar, honey, Tabasco, powdered cocoa all take their turns on the palate. The life is short and blends into the finish. Oak dryness that turns to a tongue tingle of fresh ginger root. That pins-and-needles sensation slowly fades to an oaky and orange bitter finish that lasts. My first Tomatin found me unsure as what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. Though sweet, it's the spicy zing characteristic that takes center attention. It could be a perfect aperitif. Sweet and spicy: always an exhilarating ride. Many thanks to @Telex for providing the first Tomatin experience. [87/100][Tasted: 12/23/17]

One of the added perks to being a part of our distillery trading team is the addition of top shelf bonus samples. Decades from Tomatin is one of those top shelfers. A blend of stocks from 5 different decades worth of whisky maturing in the Tomatin warehouse. So there could be anything from 3 years old up to 59 years old at play here. Bottled at 46% ABV, non chill filtered and most likely natural color of amber gold. The nose starts off fairly mild with a light sherry sweetness, lemon and light oak. Orchard fruits make their way in. Apricots, tangerines and oranges. Vegetal with an earthy peat. Waxy and oily. The fruitiness transitions into the tropical realm, mangos mostly with a little papaya and pineapple. Lots of vanilla and a general nuttiness. This thing just keeps evolving in the glass. Cocoa powder, mocha and maple syrup. Buttery toffee, buttery cookies, a touch of ginger, licorice and nutmeg. The fruity profile come back around to apples and pears, cinnamon and a light cherry note. Some floral honey in there as well. Quite a bit of complexity, even though it takes a bit of patience to get the ball rolling. The palate starts a bit hot, but it’s worth it as a huge blast of intense tropical fruits wash over the tongue. Mango, papaya, pineapple and coconut. It’s like chewing on a mouthful of tropical fruit Starburst candy. Lemons, oranges and apricots with a little banana as well. Cocoa and vanilla and a very light oak. Light peat, but more of a vegetal/ earthy feel than smoke. A dessert dram at no mistake, but a very good one. Medium-full bodied mouthfeel, oily and mouth coating. A medium long finish with lots of tropical fruits. A little on the dry side. While this started off a bit lackluster, it more than made up for it with a strength of complexity and a huge bust of flavors on the palate. Feels like the bulk of this is under 15 years old, but there is plenty of mature whisky at play here. Not very well balanced as it leans heavily to the sweeter side, but sometimes that what you’re after. I will say that at $110 I think it’s worth the price, with the caveat that it should be reserved for when your sweet tooth is tingling. A big thanks to @Telex for the sample. 4.25, but could easily be a 4.5 if in the right mood. Cheers

Finally after a week in Denver for business meetings, I was looking forward to coming home and starting on round 4 of our little trading team. We got maybe 3-4 more rounds till we've covered all the active distilleries in Scotland. So...this one came my way courtesy of Telex. I don't think I've ever had a Tomatin before, despite seeing it countless times on shelves. But this particular version is that much more appreciated since it's harder to find...at least I've personally never seen it. Apparently it's a mix of 5 decades of stock...which means is there a small part here from 50 years ago? Wasn't sure how to infer that. Either way...a knockout of a dram. Cereals and chocolate. Orchard fruits like apricots and peaches. Keep away the ice...gets bland with it. Have it with just a few drops of water. I can see this going well with some Asian spicy food pairing, since the chocolate -fruit would balance it well. Thanks Telex!

This is a fantastic example of what a NAS should be, but is it REALLY a NAS?? Now the caveat here is that it’s a blend of 67 - one refill sherry hogshead, 76 - oloroso sherry butt, 84 - refill sherry hogshead, 90 - first fill bourbon barrels, and 05 - first fill bourbon barrels. The nose is extremely complex with cherry cordial, both light and dark fruit, caramel, chocolate, vanilla, Rice Krispie treats, it’s all in there. The palate is just as complex with butterscotch, toffee, dark chocolate, black cherries, peach cobbler, and cream. The finish is medium length, bright, with hints of tobacco and basil. I am not sure how rare this is, but I put it on the same pedestal as the Bruichladdich Black Arts 4 1990. It was a dusty box on the top shelf of a local store. A theme for this dram is “Close to the Edge” by Yes. Long, elaborate, and well worth the experience.