The 18 year old dry single malt whisky enjoys its final maturation in Oloroso Sherry butts.
The Tomatin 18 Year Old is a truly luxurious world-class malt. Matured in traditional oak casks and first-fill Oloroso Sherry butts, dried apricot, nougat and distinctive nutty flavours develop into bursts of tropical fruit with mellow undertones and a rich, full-bodied finish.
As part of the renewal, the 18 Years Old was also given a new packaging in 2016. However, the content is unchanged and of the same high standard. After the first maturation in traditional casks (read: bourbon hogsheads), the whisky is finished in first-fill oloroso sherry butts. This gives the characteristic fruitiness of Tomatin extra depth, in addition to notes of chocolate and sweet spices. A beautiful malt.
Tomatin is situated at an altitude of 315 metres above sea level and is the fourth highest distillery in Scotland. The name Tomatin comes from the nearby town of the same name and is pronounced "Tomato-in". Tomatin comes from the Gaelic and means "the hill of the juniper groves". The distillery was built in 1897 by businessmen during the whisky "boom" under the newly founded company The Tomatin-Spey District-Distillery Co. In 1906, due to declining sales, the company went bankrupt and the distillery remained closed until 1909. In 1909, Tomatin reopened, now under the name The New Tomatin Distillers Co. Ltd. During the war, the distillery was closed again due to a shortage of grain. In 1956, the number of stills was doubled from 1 to 2. From 1961 to 1964, 5 more stills were added and in 1974 the distillery was completely modernised. The malting floors disappeared and more stills were added. This made Tomatin the largest distillery in Scotland. After Tomatin went bankrupt in 1985, the shares came into Japanese hands in 1986. Takar Shuzo and Okura & Co became the new owners. In the stillhouse of Tomatin there are now a total of 23 stills, twelve wash stills and eleven spirit stills, of which only 12 are still in use. Of the 24 washbacks, which are made of stainless steel, only 12 are still in use. Only 1 mashtun is also used. The new spirit is matured in refill sherry as well as in ex bourbon casks. The water used for the production of whisky comes from the Alt-na-Frith Burn. This Burn is fed by rain and snow from the Monadhlaith mountains and flows into the Findhorn River, from which cooling water for the condensers is taken. Only a small amount of Tomatin is marketed as a single malt whisky, the majority being used for blended whiskies.
Nose : full and with spicy sherry influences, aromas of grapes, apples, raisins, vanilla toffee, cloves, cinnamon, cut grass and a subtle hint of smoke.
Palate : pleasantly sweet notes of malt sugar, orange chocolate and ripe citrus fruit blend beautifully with drier notes of cocoa and toasted oak.
Finish : The finish is long and noticeably powerful with notes of vanilla, spicy oak and an accent of pepper.
It is Tomatin’s much improved wood policy which has brought it to the notice of single malt lovers. A higher percentage of first-fill casks – ex-Bourbon and ex-Sherry – has given more flesh and structure to the always top-notch spirit.
Although the first manifestation of Tomatin only ran between 1897 and 1906, its reopening under new management in 1909 saw the start of a remarkable journey which would culminate in this remote Highland outpost in between Aviemore and Inverness becoming the largest malt whisky distillery in Scotland.
Its expansion (and contraction) mirrors accurately the mood of the industry: from two stills to four in 1956, four to six in ‘58, an upping to 11 in ’61 and then in 1974 the most dramatic expansion of all, with 12 stills being installed, bringing the total to 23 and overall capacity to 10m litres per annum.
It couldn’t last. Even in 1974 the first indications of a downturn in Scotch’s fortunes were being noticed. Tomatin never ran at full capacity and in 1986 went into liquidation.
The site was saved however by two of its Japanese bulk customers, Takara Shuzo and Okura & Co [Okura’s stake was taken by Marubeni in 1998], making it the first Scotch distillery to be under Japanese control.
There has been a slow but steady recalibration ever since. The company bought blending firm J&W Hardie in 1997, adding the prestigious Antiquary blend to its portfolio. Eleven of the stills were taken out of commission in 2000 and today only 2m litres are produced from six wash and four spirit stills.
The other major change has been a shift in emphasis from bulk supply to single malt (as well as Antiquary) – again Tomatin is mirroring the market's continuing evolution. The single malt range has been widened in terms of age statements and introduced a peated variant, Cu Bocan.
