Ahh some nice Highland scotch, not a peat monster or too light and fruity – sounds great, and there’s the sherry cask to rain our parade. The problem is however how hard it is to tell if such casking is actually the best parts of this whisky. Overall it’s not great, but at it’s best it’s the fruity aspects that make it work in at least a few categories, while doing awful to mediocre in the rest.
It should be noted (as you will see below) that we typically don’t do cocktails with single malts, especially those with an age, but we felt we had to give it the old college try to see if there was anything to be redeemed here. Thankfully this action was rewarded with a Godfather – so if you’ve failed to read this review ahead of time and not been able to avoid purchase – know there is a way to save yourself.
What they Say: “Bottle: A rich, fruity aroma is the prelude to sweet, smooth flavours of ripe apples, pears and a subtle suggestion of nut before the long, lingering, pleasing oily finish.
Box: Since 1897 there has been a quiet revolution unfolding in the heart of the Scottish Highlands. High up amongst the smooth, rounded peaks of the Monadhliath Mountains there is no room for the rugged and robust. Here patience, a gentle hand and a passion for purity rule the day.
In this idyllic spot the naturally soft water of the Alt-na-Frith burn is introduced to tender local barley. Later, from the tall, slim copper stills of the Tomatin Distillery a mellow, fruity spirit is born.
Gentle maturation in the cool, stable environment found high above sea level lets the subtle character of this distinctive Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky emerge. The use of carefully selected casks ensures that the softer characters of the precious spirit are never overpowered.
You have heard the myths of this often wild and beautiful place. Now hear the truth: there is a softer side to the Highlands. There is Tomatin.
The Tomatin 12 Year Old is smooth and silky, having been matured in tradtional Scotch Whisky, ex-Bourbon and ex-Spanish Sherry Casks. A rich, fruit aroma is the prelude to sweet, smooth flavours of ripe apples, pears and a subtle suggestion of nut before the long, lingering, pleasing oily finish.”
Taste: 4.0 – While it was a nice addition to the aroma, the amount of sherry flavor here isn’t as welcome. You do get some nuts & fruits, but you taste the barrel more than the beverage.
Aftertaste: 5.0 – The end is more muted and nutty, and that slick oily feeling of the taste is – well it’s not great.
Burn/Smooth: 6.5 – There’s more an overall heat to this more so than burn. And true to text the end is a bit oily as it goes down which sort of makes it smooth. However there’s certainly enough registering to keep this from the top rank.
Aroma: 7.0 – It certainly does smell like some nice apple harvest sort of fruit. This is helped along by the way that fruit blends with the casking – of which you do get both the sherry primarily, but it’s muted so as to not offend. There’s also not real peppery spiciness here aside from just a little bit of that sherry aroma – which is nice and avoid any comparisons to rum or brandy.
Honesty: 5.0 – Oofa how this would be a different story going just by the bottle. While the word pleasing offends – the rest if on the level. Add in a nice design and we’re good. However if on your box you start talking about revolution and nonsense – well the points you had are the points you lost.
Mixability: 5.67
W/ Rocks: 4.0 – Overall far worse, you get more of that ‘pleasing’ oily aftertaste and less warm fruit. The sherry is muted, but now also all throughout – just not good.
Rusty Nail: 5.0 – This is certainly a more splash of drambuie, but even then it’s only okay.
Godfather: 8.0 – The sweetness here is a boon, and as expected while you just add some more nut that fruitiness it balances out the other flavors.
Value: 4.0 – Well we have a big problem here. It’s that the only way to drink this that makes it worth a damn isn’t enough. However we also can’t ignore that the 40 dollar price point for a 12 year is very much on the thrifty side. We’d like to say it washes out, but it doesn’t really – we just can’t recommend you buy this.
Google Shop Average: $41
Website: https://www.tomatin.com/
Reviewer Scores:
BuffaloJern: 3.5
Want to compare this spirit against our archives? Visit our statistics page.
Metric Score: 37.17/70 |+| Metric Average: 5.31 |+| Reviewer Average: 0.0
New to Honest Booze Reviews, or just wondering how we score? See our FAQ/Review Policy.
Final Thoughts: It’s fair to recognize that’s near a full 2 point difference between metric and reviewer. Let’s look back though – the two highest points is a unique smell and a single cocktail – that’s not good folks. What’s sad is that this in so many ways is close. Like if the box didn’t wank too hard, if it spent less time in a sherry cask, if ice worked just a bit better – it could have been a great scotch. At the end of the tape though – it’s not, and you shouldn’t buy it.
