57°
Distillery : Tobermory - Islands
1st Fill Oloroso Sherry Butt
Independent Bottling
By The Vintage Malt Whisky C° Ltd
Limited Edition
Single Cask
Bottled in 2019
Unchillfiltered, Uncoloured, Cask Strength
Totally Unpeated
Back in 2017, a couple of Sherry Bombs had already been released in this range, The Cooper's Choice, they were from Glenrothes at the time. And in 2019, one last cask was bottled under this Sherry Bomb name, but this time it was a Tobermory. The age is not given, and to me that means the liquid is young, less than 10 years old. Whiskybase says it's 16 years old, but I don't believe that for a second. On the other hand, it doesn't say on the bottle, but it's quite possible that it's Cask Strength, as some bloggers claim. It's rare to come across a Single Cask that's not aged, and I have to admit that I'm wondering about the consistency of the project. According to some rumours, distillation took place in 2013, so the juice is 6 years old. 360 bottles came out of the cask.
Let's Taste It :
Lumpy, almost acidic sherry, redcurrant purée, pomegranate, prickly pear, lacquered wood, freshly tanned leather, turpentine, mercurochrome, red fruit coulis, blackcurrants and blackberries, fermented apricots, cloves, ginger, nutmeg. Melted butter with a good dose of viandox. On the palate, it's much more pulpy, there's raspberry, watermelon, passion fruit, pineapple, goat's milk, a little honey, then intense spices, black pepper, cloves, nutmeg. Cough syrup, soy sauce. Powerful finish, caramel and earth, fresh fig, mellow wood, more ginger, slightly overcooked toasts, bitter orange jam. Green tomatoes.
In Short,
It's a very intense Sherry and a bit acidic, as you'd expect. The juice seems a bit young to me, I think 6 years is a likely age. Why didn't they let it age a bit more? It would certainly have been better, and the price would have seemed less disproportionate. As for now, I think it's expensive for what it is. The character of the distillery is impossible to detect, to be reserved for Sherry fans.
Score : 88
To Be Listened While Sipping :
Sloen & Swan Porter - If We Meet Again Somehow
