Tamnavulin 10yo (80's miniature)

The last distillery on my list that begins with the letter ‘T’, appropriately enough also the youngest distillery build in Scotland from the T-class. Maybe Torabhaig, the newcomer from the magnificent Isle of Skye can change all that. With little to no news on this project’s progress, we can only guess when that will be.

Now to the matter at hand, this whisky I bought as a miniature from an online auction. Safe to say I acquired this and many other bottles for just over a dime: everyone else was in a bidding contest over Port Ellen’s, Brora’s and rare Macallan’s, paying little to no attention to the cheap stuff. This bottle dates back to a simpler era, the 80’s when the teenage Tamnavulin tested how deep the muddy waters of the single malt market were, by releasing a 10yo statement of their own.

As history will point out: far too deep for blend fodder…

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Description: matured for ten years in what I guess was a standard ex-bourbon barrel, bottled at the 40% minimum ABV and released as a miniature.

Nose: the smell of a British pub on a Saturday morning: Strongbow cider meets stale beer, sour grain mash and a touch of spearmint.

Mouth: light acrid profile with notes of lemon grass, white pepper, IPA and pine resin.

Finish: long and dry; a whiff of pepper with a touch of smoke.

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Verdict: to keep it short: rarely I saw a whisky so shy and forgettable,but overall it is a harmless dram.

Find where to buy Tamnavulin whisky