Long time since I tasted some Speyside whisky - Tomatin is one of Scotlands highest located distilleries, nestled between Aviemore and Inverness. The name 'Tomatin' comes from Gaelic and means 'the hill of the juniper bushes'. At least, that's what I have been told and am inclined to believe due to my naive and romantic character. Whatever. This Tomatin is newly formulated in 2009, with an Oloroso Sherry Cask finish, and bottled at 46% non chill-filtered.


Color : dark amber, almost like red gold
Nose : Vanilla, fruity, maple syrup and sweet smoke.
Taste : Oooh, much sweeter than the smell predicted, a whole orchard is coming trough life with some chilled water added. Citrus, orange zest, dark chocolate and some faint smoke in the background.
Finish : Long and sweet, slightly bitter (that zest again) and a bit of pepper.


Niiice - quite complex for a Speyside (the Highlands are not so far away after all), but extremely well balanced. I expected more peat and smoke, but it turned out a true Speysider on that matter with its fruitiness and sweetness.
I like this *a lot* : the sweetness of Speyside combined with the complexity of the Highlands.