Tobermory 20 Years Old 1994 Cask #96 (Creative Whisky Company)

This Tobermory was selected and bottled by Creative Whisky Company, a 20 year old island malt from 1994, drawn from cask 96 and bottled at 53.8%. 374 bottles in all. Tobermory is the unpeated single malt of Mull's only distillery, founded in 1798 in the island's painted harbour town. Ledaig, the old name kept for the peated malt, means safe haven in Gaelic.

It was distilled in the kinked copper stills for a fruity spirit, building the oily Tobermory style. It rested in ex-Bourbon oak for a honeyed sweetness. Long ageing brings a deeper waxy, fruity character and a mellow oak. The cool, damp island air gives a slow, even maturation. Burn Stewart revived production in 1993, and Distell bought the distillery in 2013. The stills carry boil bulbs and a kink in the lyne arms, which lifts the reflux. Water is drawn from a private hill loch, the Gearr Abhainn, above the town.

Bottled at a cask strength 53.8%, it is intense. Honey, wax and a soft nut, and the refill bourbon lends a quiet vanilla. It is fruity and full, the oily spirit shining through. The close is long, fruit over a soft oak. This is an unpeated malt from Mull's only distillery.