Review by: The Muskox

Okay, enough messing around with all this refill-cask nonsense, let’s get to some sherry! Here’s a distillery-labeled single-cask bottling from North Star which I split a bottle of with some friends. When it showed up, we were a bit disappointed that it wasn’t coffee-dark like in the picture online, but oh well.

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Distillery: Tobermory.

Bottler: North Star Spirits.

Region: Islands (Isle of Mull).

ABV: 56.5%. Cask strength.

Age: 10 years. Distilled in September 2008. Bottled in October 2018.

Cask type: Sherry butt.

Price: $116 CAD.

Color: Deep gold. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Dark, earthy Oloroso sherry. Dark chocolate and Dr. Pepper! Rich dried fruit, molasses, and cooked mushrooms. Macerated berries, orange, passionfruit, and apple cider. Crystalized ginger and cinnamon. Chocolate fudge and hazelnuts. A slight hint of leather. A bit of a coastal thing underneath, but I can’t quite tell if that’s from the cask or the distillate.

Palate: Heavy body. Rich almost-overripe tropical fruit at the front. Orange, mango, coconut, passionfruit, as well as red grape and cherry. A wave of ginger heat, oak, and chili pepper on the development, giving way to more chocolate fudge, salted caramel, and molasses. Dr. Pepper and birch beer. Some vanilla sweetness and a hint of barley sugar. Earthy, nutty funk and leather persist underneath everything.

Finish: Sticky. More molasses, mushrooms, punky wood, cola, and fruit leather. Rich chocolate ganache. Orange, black cherry, and mango. Some tarter earthy notes here. Some thyme now maybe, and a pinch more salt.

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Conclusion: Really, really good. It’s an earthy Oloroso bomb, but there’s almost no bitterness or harsh tannins to speak of. You’d think that a fresh dry sherry cask plus Tobermory distillate would be doubling-down on earth, but it really works. Great body, lots of fruit, chocolate, and molasses, with that nice earthy finish. It honestly reminds me of a less-extreme Kavalan Solist, but without any of the off notes. Top marks, North Star.

Final Score: 88.

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky. (Convalmore 36)
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category. (Bruichladdich Black Art 4.1)
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram. (Ledaig 13 Amontillado)
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff. (Tomatin 18)
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting. (Glen Scotia 15)
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better. (Aultmore 12)
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink. (Glenmorangie 10)
• 50-59: Save it for mixing. (Old Pulteney 12)
• 0-49: Blech. (Muirhead’s Silver Seal 16)