Scotch Whisky Review #195: Tormore 16 Year

Distillery: Tormore

Region: Speyside

Price: €7.00 for a 30 mL sample

ABV: 48%

Cask Type: Bourbon

Age: 16 Year

Color: 1.3, Russet/Muscat. Non-Chill Filtered but has Color Added.

Nose: It starts off with a bunch of fruits, its a mixed bag of them with notes of apple and plum standing out. Then there’s a very strong not of peanut butter that reminds me an awful lot of opening a packet of Nutter Butter cookies. There’s a slightly fragrant note towards the end as well of star anise.

Palate: The mouthfeel is on the creamy side, not the milky creamy but more of a nut better creaminess. To go with that creamy mouthfeel is a mix of almond butter and a bit of Nutella. A boozy red berry compote joins it along with a note of a warm sugar donut (specifically thinking of 꽈배기/Korean twisted donuts).

Finish: Medium to long in length. The boozy berry compote pops up again before finishing with an earthier tone of roasted barley tea and coffee.

Conclusion: Tormore is one of those distilleries that appears to be perfectly happy flying under the radar. This 16 year old expression is one of their few distillery releases. I have to say, it’s quite different than your average Speyside. The creamy, nutty notes that are throughout are quite memorable and delicious and play very well well with the fruit and that little bit of donut that pops up. However, I’m left feeling like there is something missing despite having some lovely and well balanced flavors. I can’t quite place my finger on what it is, but that little feeling of emptiness kept biting at me as I had this. Still, a very good whisky and one I’m glad to have tried.

Final Score: 82.

Scotch Whisky Review #195, Speyside Review #81, Whisky Network Review #273

Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.