08/12/2025 Tomatin

Tomatin 27yo 1987/2014 (46.3%, Morrison & Mackay Càrn Mòr Celebration of the Cask imported by The Stillman's, Hogshead, C#495, 187b, b#10): nose: boldly fragrant, the nose offers boiled cabbage, lingonberry compote, but also a delicious blackcurrant liqueur. It takes a turn for the darker and sees berries black as night. Blackberries, elderberries, chokeberries, huckleberries, mulberries are brightened up with stewed cranberries. It has a soft touch of pickled red onions too, or a drop of red-wine vinegar. That is but fleeting, however; soon, we are smelling a warm bilberry tart and concentrated tamarind paste on toast. The second nose has black ink and jelly of some kind. Jellied spinach, perhaps? As a parting gift, the nose gives us a whiff of cork. Later on, that transforms into raisins dripping with syrup, which takes us close to Sherry -- probably Pedro Ximénez. Mouth: very oily in texture, it appears shy in taste, initially. Nectarine juice? Chewing stirs up a strange concoction, part cardboard, part smashed cranberries, part chocolate, part vinegar. It works, but it is unusual. More chewing releases a dollop of Marmite on an onion beigel. The second sip has a faint tea-like bitterness that comes and goes. Squid-ink pasta with a creamy sauce and burgundy nail varnish. Retro-nasal olfaction spots bread baking in the oven. This is a funny one! Finish: silky, it has Madeira wine, a hint of chocolate, and onion relish. Is that jellied smelts? It certainly feels gelatinous, in any case, and somehow a trifle fishy. Jellied pistachios and dried dates rock up in the second gulp, still with Madeira wine. Repeated quaffing makes all converge towards pressed raisins coated in melted chocolate (55% cocoa content). We may well distinguish a spoonful of caramel coulis to be poured on top of that. This is good, but I am not sure we hear much from the distillate. I reckon the cask does most of the talking. 7/10 (Thanks for the sample, OB)