31/10/2025 Tomatin

Tomatin 1964/1995 (40%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice, IE/14): nose: honey-glazed plums coated in dust. Ah! these old minis... In the background, we also have candied cherries that disappear as soon as one brings the glass closer to one's nose. How peculiar! We continue with glazed red onions, hair gel, glossy paper and magazines hot off the press. This is rather glossy, to put it succinctly. Some breathing allows oily tobacco to take part, followed by concrete dust and faint industrial glue. The second nose is smokier. It is neither The Quest for Fire, nor the Industrial Revolution, yet it gives dusty-engine vibes all the same, with the fruity nose now safely in the back seat. Unless we are talking about chestnuts roasting in a brasero. Something vaguely mineral develops, over time, stone chippings of an unidentified provenance. It even has remote chocolate, upon repeated nosing. Mouth: it is still a tad briny, but it soon reclaims its glossiness. Magazines, glazed cherries, glazed chestnuts, yellow fruits in a layer of Golden Syrup... Chewing confirms apricots coated in caramelised honey, and injects a nuance of tobacco. This is not a smoky whisky on the palate, yet one would not have to stretch to picture a wood-panelled room in which gentlemen routinely smoke. It also has Cracotte or Original Ryvita crackerbread, augmented with some bland spread. Then, it is blond-tobacco smoke through retro-nasal olfaction, and crunchy toast. The second sip is fruitier, with unripe plums, nectarines also not ready to be consumed, and scarlet Morello cherries. Despite a dash of warm caramel coulis, this is fruity, but not that sweet. Lastly, bitter-orange marmalade shows up. Yum! Subsequent sips are more drying, then almost immediately juicy. Finish: pleasant, if assertive, it has more toast, now covered with cream cheese and honey occupying half the surface each. There is a lingering, soft-but-clear creamy bitterness that coats the palate, as if imparted by Macadamia or chestnuts. The second gulp sees a fruit compote eaten off a cardboard plate, a Biscotte with a dollop of marmalade and some tame wood spices, chiefly stem ginger. At the death, we spot a puff of tobacco smoke, blown on granite dust through an old zinc straw. Further sips are more straightforward, giving a lovely marmalade tone with fresh banana slices. This is not what I expected, but it is very good. 8/10