Tomatin 30 Years Old 1994 Whiskyland Chapter Eight (Decadent Drinks)

Decadent Drinks bottled this Tomatin, a 30 year old from 1994 and bottled at 51.6%. Just 230 bottles were filled. Tomatin, founded in 1897 in the Highland village of the same name, was once Scotland's largest malt distillery. Cu Bocan takes its name from a spectral hound said to haunt the Tomatin hills.

Drawn off copper pot stills fed by the burn of the deer, for a soft, apple and pear scented spirit. Maturation came in ex-Bourbon wood, with vanilla and a soft apple. At over thirty years it is rich and mellow, tropical fruit, honey and old oak. The mellow make leans on the cask for much of its colour and flavour. Cold, clean water runs down to the distillery from the hills above. Under Japanese stewardship the focus turned from sheer volume to quality. The very long fermentation is central to the distillery's fruity character. The distillery sits beside the A9, the old road north to Inverness.

At a hearty 51.6% it carries real weight. A soft, fruity sweetness, and honeyed vanilla comes through from the ex-Bourbon. The mouthfeel is soft, the fruit carried on a mellow body. A long, honeyed finish carries a fruity lift. This is a gentle, fruity Highland single malt.