The Tomatin 18 Year Old, here in its renewed 2016 design, is matured in traditional oak casks (ex-bourbon) and finished in first-fill Oloroso Sherry butts for 2 to 3 years.
Tomatin 18 yo (46%, OB 2016, Oloroso sherry butt finish)
Tomatin 18 yo (46%, OB 2016, Oloroso sherry butt finish)Nose: opens on a mix of honeyed notes and a real sense of freshly opened Oloroso casks (including the hint of dusty oak). Apricots, hints of Moscatel wine and golden raisins. Cinnamon syrup and vanilla. Baked apples. Heathery touches. Nicely fruity with balanced sherry.
Mouth: fairly sweet and fruity again, with a creamy texture. There’s barley sugar, honey, candied ginger. Hints of apricots and toffee. A big malty layer underneath, with medium spices (pepper, ginger) from the oak.
Finish: looses some of its fruity finesse, becoming plain malty and even beer-like, with subtle hints of dry cocoa and bittersweet spices.
Good middle-aged Tomatin. I really like the fruitiness and balanced sherry of the nose but I’m less fond of the increasingly strong malty side on the palate. Around € 70-90.
Score: 86/100