Review by: The Muskox

Dram 7 of an incredible run of whisky… I’ve heard stories about this Tamdhu. TOModera tried it at this bar ages ago… then it left the menu. But now it’s back, and the bottle is nearly full. They cracked a fresh one, the madlads!

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Distillery: Tamdhu.

Bottler: Douglas Laing.

Region: Speyside.

ABV: 50%.

Age: 34 years. Distilled in October 1966. Bottled in October 2000.

Cask type: Unknown, presumably a sherry cask.

Price: N/A. $46 CAD for a pour at the bar.

Color: Light amber. Natural Color. Non-chill-filtered.

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Nose: Intense fragrant spice and old wood. An ancient spice cabinet, filled with forgotten jars of whole cardamom, cloves, and peppercorns. Soft fruits, coming in waves – plums, papaya, mealy pears, brown bananas, and some melon action. Very old sherry, but soft. A bit of a musty herbal licoricey note, perhaps tarragon. “Mexican Fruitcake”, according to Cagliostro. To my knowledge, that doesn’t exist. But if it did, it’d smell like this.

Palate: Thick texture. Arrives with balanced sweetness and rich flavours of kiwi, papaya, and brown sugar. Extremely extended development, through rancio, rich old oak, balanced woodspice, and rich buttery malt. There’s a creaminess in the middle as well – poppyseeds, vanilla beans, even cheese danishes. Deeper fruit notes of dried currants and plums. Complex spice unfolds – clove, sarsaparilla, candied ginger, and cola syrup.

Finish: Very long, with huge oak, spice, and tropical fruit. Creamy coconut, papaya, lime, preserved cherries, and more melon. Chocolate babka, Dr. Pepper, black peppercorns, and deep rancio. Darker fruit notes sit underneath – raisins and cassis.

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Possible SMWS bottling name: “Fully-loaded pirate ship”

Conclusion: Oh my god. This is the one, the best old sherry-cask whisky I’ve ever had. The flavours are exotic, layered, and intense. It’s so perfectly balanced, with massive spice and rich deep oak, but never overbearing. The depth of fruit is amazing. Beautiful complexity and excellent structure. It’s somehow soothing to drink – I think I said at the time that it tastes like what being on vacation feels like.

Cagliostro and I had some pretty good whiskies last week, so you’d think picking the best one would be a difficult proposition. But no, we both immediately recognized this as the obvious winner.

Final Score: 95.

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Scoring Legend:

• 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
• 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
• 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
• 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
• 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
• 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
• 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
• 50-59: Save it for mixing.
• 0-49: Blech.