If you remember , a month a go I posted about the changes in the Tomatin core range, mainly the addition of the new 14 year old (replacing the 15 yo) and the 1988 vintage which will replace the 30 year old that’s gone. I am going to try this older 1988 vintage first, and then post notes later this week of the 14 year old. The 1988 is quite a limited edition with only 2,500 bottles available for the first batch and was matured in a combination of ex-Bourbon and ex-Port casks, so we can expect it to be on the sweeter side.Let’s get going:
Tomatin 1988 / 25 Year Old , 46% abv, £160 (TWE)
Nose: Sweet and fruity. Plum Marmalade. Strawberry jam, sweet oak, candied ginger. White pepper and orange peel. On the sweet side alright. Morning toast anyone? Missing the butter
Palate: starts spicy with cracked pepper pods, and here’s the missing butter from the nose. Buttery and vanilla like. With dough, plums(fresh) a little bit of mint with a good oaky feeling to it. Certainly less sweet than the nose.
Finish: Dry bitter sweet chocolate with orange, pepper and spicy oak.
A lovely whisky, rich, sweet, with a lot of fruity, and some oaky notes, the port casks have certainly played first fiddle here. Very fresh for a 25 year old, and enjoyable. I’ve not had the 30 year old sadly (It’s on my list of todo’s) so I cant really compare the two yet… Solid stuff from Tomatin from every angle you look at it.
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