Review by: Maltrunners
Raygun’s Introduction: This Tobermory came from Royal Mile Whiskies, a well-known shop in Edinburgh located appropriately enough on the Royal Mile. They’ve done occasional bottles under their own label for a while now, but seem to have stepped up the number of those starting in 2023. This full review features a summary of what we found, a group score, and our individual notes and scores for those who want all the details.
Distillery: Tobermory
Bottler: Royal Mile Whiskies
Region/style: Islands single malt Scotch
ABV: 50.8%
Age: 28 years. Distilled on July 22, 1994, bottled in May 2023.
Cask type: Sherry cask #381018, 551 bottles. Sounds like a butt.
Color: 1.3 russet. Natural color. Non-chill-filtered.
Price: $213 at the time, but the exchange rate was more favorable when I bought it.
The Group
Nose: The common theme was some kind of funk, variously described as chemical, earthy, or rubber. I feel we were all groping for how to describe it precisely. Mineral and salty/briny scents were often noted as well. After that, it was all over the place. Some got honey, some got florals, two of us actually mentioned teriyaki specifically (didn’t see that coming), and cherries and plums popped up as well. You’ve been warned.
Palate: Earthy was the probably the most common descriptor. Took a dessert turn with caramel, chocolate, and berries/cherries being noted. The savory character remained, and a number of us remarked on the tannic character as well, with (overbrewed) black tea. Dried berries or fruit were more often mentioned than fresh here, which might be due to the salty and earthy flavor and relative lack of tartness.
Finish: Berries still. Tannic notes were found by most tasters, and several commented on the earthy character as well. Otherwise, not much in common.
Conclusion: Dirty, earthy, and funky describe this well. These notes illustrate why some of us thought it was challenging and not something a casual drinker would likely enjoy. You have to like a certain kind of profile. To be honest, I (Raygun) expected a wider spread: I thought it was very possible some people wouldn’t like it. I ended up the low score, to my surprise. The average ended up pretty high, but some caution is still in order. It’s not the friendliest pour by any means.
Average Score: 86.6 (82-91)
DemiTastes
Nose: Rich honey and honeysuckle and not much else right away. Needed a long rest to open up. A note that’s tangy, savory, and sharp at the same time, not quite acetone but similar, and in a good way. Teriyaki honey rib glaze. Tarragon. Rubber gaskets with that factory-new cloying plastic smell. Sunflower seed oil. Coming back around: Cocoa nibs / extra dark chocolate. Dark, almost-burnt caramel. Torched blood orange peel.
Palate: Sweeter than expected; I really expected this to lead savory from the nose. Gentle on arrival. Creamy and mouth-coating. Berries (sweet raspberry and blueberry) and flan caramel topping. Heat creeps in on the back palate. Chive flowers. A strong barrel bitterness creeps in upon chewing. Thankfully no rubber/plastic notes here. Dehydrated strawberry slices.
Finish: Blueberry compote with that tarragon note again. Hint of freshly-cracked black pepper rises out of the barrel bitterness and is ultimately pleasant. Medium long. Late in the finish, something reminds me of opening up the crinkly cellophane wrapping around a box of Chinese noodles.
Conclusion: This was just huge honey for me on the nose at first but after a solid rest, it opened up into a wild bouquet ranging from fruity esters to dark caramels and wood tannins, savory flavors of teriyaki ribs and sauteed chives, and a range of plastic and rubber aromas, and just a hint of grain. The sherry is strong on sweetness and presents most clearly as berries but integrates with the malt and wood notes to reveal complex flavors of well-sauced foods. I don’t detect much of anything that’s recognizable to me as being particularly similar to Ledaigs I’ve had, albeit mostly young expressions, but I also somehow feel like this will help me wrap my head around Ledaig expressions just a little bit better. There’s something distinctive here both from the old Tobermory distillate as well as from an interesting sherry cask. I don’t often buy bottles this old but at this price I would be very tempted. I’m very pleased to have tried this. This is a sit-and-think bottle. I’d bring this out for a whisky fan with whom I can enjoy a comfortable silence as we sit and ponder a dram together. I don’t know if I’d reach for it all the time because it has a kind of funkiness that isn’t an immediate crowd pleaser. I’d need to be in the mood for something a little weird that’s going to force me to think about it to enjoy it.
Buy a bottle? 4/5 – yes. At the price Raygun got it for, I’d buy one whole bottle only and be content with that. Probably not another.
Final Score: 88 – Excellent, a standout dram. When I put myself in a reviewer mindset, this really speaks to me. Will it call to me when I just want a dram? Maybe not, and that holds it back just a little. I think some people won’t get along with the plastic/rubber part of the profile but it doesn’t bother me too much in that I find it interesting to explore without being actively offputting for me.
BradboBaggins
Nose: Nutty, rich, baklava
Palate: Enters with silky caramel pot de creme, middle of tannic honey, closes with lanolin and slate.
Finish: Hangs with some wooden spice, honey, walnut skin.
Final Thoughts: Robust, well aged, very sherried, with a fun lanolin note. I actually thought I would like it a smidge more, but it’s still a grand dram.
Final Score: 91
Maltenberg
Nose: Sweet figs, plum and savory ume, stones, sea water, chlorophyll, cream cheese, vegetable stock, violets.
Palate: Sweet fig, salt water, assam tea, cherry compote, cinnamon, leather, developing with a bit of pleasant drying, coconut.
Finish: Long on fig preserves or fig newton, assam tea, ume plum liqueur, black currant, coconut.
Conclusion: Excellent old school sherry character on offer here with a balance of sweet and syrupy and structured dryness.
Final Score: 88
Raygun
Nose: There’s some earthy Tobermory funk. And by “some,” I mean “a lot.” Cola, chocolate-covered cherries, tomato paste, and mushrooms. Oddly, some grape soda, too. Matchstick sulfur and barnyard.
Palate: Not a conventional sherry bomb at all. Tends to the earthy, savory, and meaty. The Tobermory I’ve had before hasn’t been noticeably funky, but this is pretty much exactly what I’d expect Ledaig minus the peat to be. Hints of raisins and dates, and a bit of the cherry but it’s dried now. Plus meat broth, cola, chocolate, and mushrooms. Seriously tannic.
Finish: The earthy theme continues. Tomato paste, cola, beef broth, and chocolate, joined by raisins. Really does taste like flat cola in a barnyard. Lots of oak. Maybe not a refill cask after all. Certainly would account for the tannins. Not too savory here, but the umami is strong for sure.
Conclusion: Gets points for interesting. Requires a lot of tolerance for dirty, earthy flavors. Not dirty in the way sulfur can be, though I did get touches of that. More like distillate sulfur than cask sulfur. Barnyard, mushroom, and earth flavors are strong. I could imagine this turning some drinkers off, though the WB overall score is high. Me, I enjoyed it.
Final Score: 82
Whiskery Turnip
Nose: Savory and coastal, rice crackers, smoked gim or nori, salty and sweet teriyaki glaze, dried fruits, hints of rubber tires.
Palate: Medium-bodied, black cherry and aniseed, dried plums, salt, sweet and sour, more rubber and brown sugar in the background with earth and motor oil.
Finish: Medium to long with musty sugars and earth.
Conclusion: Savory and coastal with arare, rice crackers, iso peanuts, and sheets of smoked gim, or nori. Slightly sweet with teriyaki glaze among dried cherries, ume, and hints of rubber tires. Medium-bodied on the palate with rich notes of black cherry powder, aniseed candies, li hing mui, dried plums— all the goodies one might find in a Crack Seed store, an old fashioned Chinese candy seller with jars of preserved, dried, and pickled goodies. More rubber and brown sugar sat in the background; shredded old tires on a playground with a touch of earthiness and motor oil. The finish was medium to long with musty sugars and earth.
Overall, I found the flavors immensely nostalgic. The aroma transitioned nicely from rice crackers to fruits with a rubbery character in the background. I did not find it unpleasant at all and the flavors on the palate presented a wonderful spread of musty, fruity delights. I wish more of the maritime character had carried over and that the body was weightier, but the finish was pleasant. Dirty and delicious, if not quite turned up to the volume I wanted.
Final Score: 84
Ricebowl
Nose: Slight sulphur, burnt candle, cabbage, mild dark chocolate, plum and cherry sauce, rotting mango
Palate: Cabbage, plum sauce, chocolate cream cake, coconut flakes, bitter almond syrup, orange bitters, earthy dirt, overbrewed black tea, burnt sugar
Finish: Overbrewed tea
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.
Malt Runners 