Tomatin, Arran and Bruichladdich

Tomatin 11 yo ‘Batch 4’ (51%, That Boutique-y Whisky Firm, 1174 bottles)
Many tomatoes on this label, who does not love tomatoes? Color: straw. Nostril: I discover bread starter, lemon peel, shortbread and recent linens at first. This impression of lemon flavoured shortbread, which does exist and is dangerously tasty. Additionally some good wee honey notes too. With water: extra in the direction of cereals, freshly milled grist, buttered white toast and cider apple. Mouth: superb, numerous simple inexperienced and citrus fruits, apples, banana, somewhat pineapple, some peppery watercress, all types of simple, typical and really nice issues occurring right here. No tomatoes although! With water: drier, extra on pollens, plain biscuits, mead and white pepper. Nonetheless eminently sippable. End: medium, nonetheless fairly on lemons, apples and now oatcakes too. Feedback: innocent, charming and intensely simple ingesting Tomatin. Nevertheless, given the shortage of tomatoes, I am questioning if it is not potential to sue these glorious of us at Atom below some form of product description violation? Clearly that is strictly theoretical you perceive.
SGP: 551 – 83 factors.

Arran 24 yo 1996/2021 (49.5%, OB for The Whisky Alternate, cask #721, sherry, 274 bottles)
There appears to be some uncertainty across the actual cask sort of those latest OB Arrans for TWE. Nevertheless, within the phrases of Donald Trump: who cares! Color: rosewood. Nostril: I too really feel assured it is a sherry cask, and a very good one in addition! Certainly, notes of boot polish (little doubt the ability of suggestion laborious at work there) and cherry cough syrup, natural wines, Serge’s beloved inexperienced walnut liqueur, tomato vines and a few fairly costly strawberry jam. I discover it a really clear and fairly sharp, exact sherry model. Fairly glorious! Mouth: good arrival, punchy wooden spices, cloves, aniseed, freshly made espresso, bitter chocolate, extra walnuts – pickled this time – and fairly a whole lot of sturdy black tea, black pepper and recreation meats. Getting extra leathery with fairly just a few bitter herbs, ala some lengthy aged Fernet Branca maybe. Properly umami as properly with fairly a little bit of miso paste and dried mushrooms. Actually glorious drop. End: good size, lengthy the truth is, all on bitter herbs, walnuts and occasional with a darkish chocolate as soon as once more. Feedback: Undecided how a lot Arran DNA stays on this wee magnificence, however the sherry cask was undeniably excellent.
SGP: 561 – 88 factors.

Arran 24 yo 1996/2021 (53.4%, OB for The Whisky Alternate, cask #757, “we expect it is a wine cask of some variety”, 273 bottles)
There appears to be much less certainty about this one at TWE HQ. One of many benefits of being gradual / late / lazy with these samples is that by the point I get spherical to them we will do enjoyable head to heads like this. Color: rosewood – a notch darker. Nostril: very comparable profile, solely right here I discover some extra dried flowers and solutions of pot pourri, additionally issues like Cheng Pi (Chinese language aged orange peels), bergamot, canvass and a firmer earthiness that will incorporate hessian and wine cellar mulch. Additionally glorious and to my nostril additionally a sherry cask in case you ask me. With water: turns into properly mossy, mulchy, leafy, moist bracken, tobacco pouches, walnuts and fruit loaf. Mouth: good assault, numerous agency however clear oak spices, darkish chocolate, walnuts, aniseed, cough mixtures, natural extracts, this impression as soon as once more of combined cocktail bitters with varied manifestations of cherry occurring. Pu erh tea, liquorice and darkish fruit chutneys. With water: the spices and bitter chocolate tones are elevated, extra bitter natural extracts, extra walnuts and extra dry earthiness. End: lengthy, barely gamey, leathery, bitter herbs, chocolate, natural cough mixtures. Wonderful! Feedback: I could not let you know which one in all these I desire to be trustworthy, so identical rating, however I’m left with the nagging feeling that I most likely ought to have purchased myself a bottle of both or each. Make of that what you’ll.
SGP: 461 – 88 factors.

Lochindaal 13 yo 2007/2021 (56.9%, Bramble Whisky Firm, Chateau Climens Sauternes Cask, 292 bottles)
The nice folks behind Bramble Whisky Co are additionally accountable for the perfect cocktail bars in Edinburgh: Bramble, Fortunate Liquor Co and Final Phrase Saloon. If you end up in Edinburgh and fancy one thing scrumptious and enjoyable to drink I might advocate that you just examine them out. Actual, impartial, genuine bars run by intelligent and passionate folks nonetheless want help in these irritating occasions. Color: gold. Nostril: massive, brilliant creamy peat smoke. This fairly quilted feeling to the smoke that implies thickness and texture. There’s additionally seawater, grapefruit, mineral salts, seashore pebbles, kelp and an encroaching tarriness. You possibly can additionally add to that some kippers, lemon juice and smoked olive oil. I discover it massive, fats and glorious! With water: a way more direct and sharply accented medicinal side. Bandages, antiseptic, iodine, natural mouthwash, seawater and pink grapefruit. Mouth: a giant briny arrival, a rush of tar, pickling juices, marmite, ointments, seawater and a few fairly herbal-tinged peat smoke. Additionally TCP soaked bandages, aniseed, inexperienced olives and camphor. Huge, correct Islay malt whisky. With water: again to this sense of pickling juices, cornichons in brine, antiseptic, aspirin, iodine, natural cough drugs, dried seaweed, nori, anchovy paste. A great deal of stuff occurring right here. End: lengthy, deeply tarry and really peaty now, this lingering feeling of thick, oiliness and textural, peppery peat smoke. Feedback: ex-sweet wine casks, equivalent to Sauternes, are one of many exceptions that I feel can actually work wonders with whisky, particularly peated ones, and this showcases that fusion simply brilliantly. Thoughts you, full time period maturation is its personal ball recreation versus ending / re-racking and so on. Prime notch, fantastically mouth-filling and scrumptious stuff from Bruichladdich. And a terrific choice by Bramble.
SGP: 667 – 90 factors.

Port Charlotte 11 yo 2002 (66.7%, Scotch Malt Whisky Society 127.39 ‘Intensely Tasty’, refill sherry butt, 579 bottles)
66.7%? Bezos might get his silly cockrocket into orbit with only a miniature. Color: gold. Nostril: fairly weirdly approachable even at full energy. This identical impression of ‘creamy peat smoke’, that will form of incorporate camphor, sarsaparilla, menthol resins, salted liquorice and brine cured fish. Deeply highly effective but with an important feeling of management; the whisky has its hand on the tiller – you’re simply within the boat and not using a life jacket! With water: will get sootier, fatter, an oil slick over uncooked seawater, salted Dutch liquorice, pure mercurochrome, Gentian eau de vie combined with Mezcal, petrol and camphor rubbed into sheep wool. Fairly mad and fairly sensible. Mouth: oooft! Alert Alert Alert! But additionally excellent too. Pure brine, anchovy sauce, umami paste, pickled mussels, pure tar liqueur, ointments, bandages farmyard. A complete lot of ‘stuff’ occurring! However let’s not be shy with the water… With water: mushy, thick, turfy peat smoke, aniseed, iodine, camphor, bonjella mouth gel, mouthwash, carbolic acidity, mussels pickled in malt vinegar and brine. There’s masses occurring and the general impression is only one of uncooked, however detailed, energy. End: lengthy, stuffed with thick, deep peat smoke, farmyard, hessian, camphor, tar, petrol and iodine. Some umami black olive bread and rosemary too! Feedback: It is a monster, however with time, persistence and a full-loaded pipette, you possibly can uncover a fairly exceptional and splendidly advanced whisky. It does nothing to dispel the impression I’ve that these preliminary re-opening vintages, 2001 – 2003, at Bruichladdich produced some really sensible whiskies. ‘Intensely Tasty’, certainly.
SGP: 678 – 91 factors.