Tormore 1995 20 Year 86 Proof Collection (Signatory)

* Tasted from a bottle blended from hogsheads #3903 and 3904, bottled 2016. Nose: Soft and slightly floral, grassy and hay-like, cereal aromas, green apple, lemon essence and a little oaky spice. Palate: The arrival is grassy and astringent with bright citrus flavours. The development brings out nutty and oily notes - peanut oil in particular. A spicy and hot gingery character intensifies throughout the tasting and the texture is quite waxy. Finish: Long, tangy like over-acidic lemon curd, peppery and spicy. A little bitter/sour wood tannin creeps in towards the end. Tormore is a backbone for Chivas Regal blends where its characteristic citrus and nutty profile provides structure, however you seldom see it as a single malt expression, apart from a 12 year old official bottling (which is not bad but often unavailable) and some independent bottlings (which can be very nice). This expression, however, seemed to me to be rather unsettled, brash, and not particularly engaging. I enjoy a challenging dram but this was just too much towards the unfriendly end of the spectrum, with a somewhat wet-hay waxy funk about it that didn’t quite balance the bracing citrus notes. Tasted at a Sydney whisky tasting event, 22 May 2017. “Above Average” : 81/100 (3 stars)