Tomintoul 27 years is no longer available from Tomintoul and has instead been replaced by its slightly younger sibling the Tomintoul 25. Through careful forensic analysis and the use of complicated literary algorithms I’ve been able to reconstruct what I believe to be a reasonable approximation to how the distillery might have described this simple little dram. I believe they would have described it as having “been lovingly crafted, from a selection of the finest bourbon casks, each aged for at least twenty-seven years”.
If you missed the previous Tomintoul reviews and don’t know why the above might be considered amusing click on the Tomintoul link below and check out how they describe damn near every whisky on their site. Bland wording and unimaginative marketing for a bland and unimaginative whisky. Well, on to the Tomintoul 27 years review.
Tomintoul 27 years Info
Region: Speyside, Scotland
Distiller: Tomintoul
Mashbill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask:ex-Bourbon
Age: 27 Years
ABV: 40%
Price: $200+ (Discontinued | Auction or Specialty Store)
Tomintoul 27 years Review
EYE
Amber
NOSE
Sweet fruity maltiness with a merest fleck of spice, oak, vanilla and citrus. Light as light can be.
PALATE
Light and watery sweet maltiness with a pinch of fruit, spice and oak. I searched and searched for anything more, but came up empty. It’s almost like it was mixed 50/50 with water before serving.
FINISH
Short fizzle of malt, fruit ash and bitter oak.
BALANCE, BODY & FEEL
Not fully balanced, thin body and a light smooth feel. So smooth it was as if someone mixed it 50/50 with water, making it only 20% ABV, before serving it – like whisky flavored water.
OVERALL
Tomintoul 27 years was not an exciting, dynamic or interesting whisky and I can see why it was discontinued. The aroma was light and airy without a whole lot more going on outside of a sweet maltiness with a bit of oak which followed through the palate and into the finish.
There is subtlety and nuance and then there is this. Darn near one noted and wholly uninteresting but nothing off or offensive. If I was being snarky I’d call Tomintoul 27 a noncommittal whisky for drinkers who don’t care, but I’m not so I’ll just call it a light and simple dram that defines lightness and simplicity instead.
SCORE: 77-79/100 (C+, not consumed at home)