Tomintoul Peaty Tang

Beautifully balanced and enjoyable, but without being really memorable. Lemony and peaty. Kind of reminds me of an Ardbeg, but with everything toned down to about half-power (and clearly not in the same league!). A lovely dram from a rapidly improving distillery.

Awh hell! Peaty Tang is an understatement. That tang is an overwhelming clang on the nose and palate. Just a wreck that makes finding other notes a task. Major pickling effect going on with it. I definitely get a briny funk, and not in a nice refreshing maritime manner. The finish is thankfully short, but sour. I would definitely pass on this one. I can’t even think of a fitting song for the dram. Maybe “Sour Girl” by Stone Temple Pilots, but I like the song too much for that. Even though it wasn't for me, thanks Ryan for the sample!

I finally took some time yesterday morning to sit down with this one and give it a proper go (I’ve been working nights the last 2 weeks due to a safety inspection at my work- I don’t make it a habit of waking up and getting tipsy. In case you were wondering, lol). This bottle was offered up as a sample for our tour group by Ryan, via me. Tomintoul advertises themselves as the gentle dram. This peated version is something they do a couple times a year to fill out their portfolio, I think. I get the whole gentle dram when it comes to sherried or even ex-bourbon Speyside style malts. A gentle peat whisky seems out of place, IMO. Just like this bottle... The nose is quite heavily peated and smoked. If there are some gentle fruit notes intended they were overpowered by the peat smoke for sure. It smells a tad sweet, but not overly so. The palate is also wrecked by the smoke- it’s heavy. There’s also a metallic flavor that just doesn’t meld well with anything. I wouldn’t call it harsh- just weird. The finish is medium length, a bit peppery with another over abundance of smoke. My first thought was that this was a mediocre whisky with artificial smoke added for effect. I know it wasn’t made this way, it’s just the impression I got. Overall, I wouldn’t buy another bottle of this and I really don’t want to finish what I have. It’s not offensive and worthy of a drain pour- I just don’t have much desire to drink any more of it. 2.25 stars.

Part of our Scottish distillery trade team, this was provided by Ryan. I was so looking forward to this. It's like back in high school. Graduation day. You go to the podium, give the valedictorian speech, collect your awards in math and science. And then then comes the real fun, you've been looking forward to the night post ceremonies. You go out with all your friends , pocket full of singles, to your first strip club. EXCEPT...you're only 17, and your friends are all 18!!!! And you don't have a fake license. (sure...get a scholarship to University of Michigan, but can't get a fake license). And oh..thanks mom and dad for making me skip that extra grade in grammar school...now I'm stuck in Joe's Diner having coffee and pound cake, while my friends are inside the strip club. Yes. That's what this felt like. Was looking forward to my first Tomintoul, especially with a name like Peaty Tang. But, instead it's more like a watered down Lagavulin or Ardbeg. Save yourself the money, and instead pour a dram of Ardbeg, and top it with three drams of water. Voila, there's your Peaty Tang. What's the lesson learned in all this? DON'T MAKE YOUR KIDS SKIP A GRADE.