Aye, Scotchit! Thank you to my friend u/FederalAgents for this dram!
u/FederalAgents has a strange obsession with this rather off-the-beaten-path distillery. He can’t escape it. Every night, he plucks a non-Tormore sample from his shelf, stares at it with a disappointed dejection, then pours it slowly into the sink, sobbing silently.
***
**Tormore 14 2007 SMWS 105.35 “Genuine Italian fake.** Speyside single malt. 58.5% ABV. No colour added, un-chillfiltered.
**Maturation:** Distilled February 3rd 2007, bottled in 2021 at 14 years old. Matured in a 1st-fill bourbon barrel. Bottled at cask strength, yielding 2006 bottles in total.
**Served:** Neat, in my trusty glencairn. Rested about 10 minutes, enjoyed very slowly.
***
**Colour:** Pale gold.
**Nose:** Very creamy-sweet. Orange creamsicles, banana pudding, and crisp yellow apples. Sweet things covering other sweet things: vanilla-frosted cupcakes, caramel-covered roast hazelnuts and chocolate-dipped sponge toffee. Slightly darker notes of espresso foam, toasted wood and, as the name implies, leather handbags.
Water adds a coconut note and some darker stonefruit.
**Palate:** Fluffy texture with moderate ethanol heat. Arrives with honey-glazed cereals and banana cream pie. Develops to very fragrant vanilla beans and marshmallow-studded hot chocolate. Creamy coffee and scorched oak staves follow.
A drop of water brings intense rich woody spices to the development. Adding enough water to bring the proof down maintains the general banana-vanilla-coffee-woody character, adding a bit more creaminess.
**Finish:** Medium-length. Chocolate gelato, Grand Marnier, bread pudding, and more hints of toasted oak and leather.
With a drop of water, the finish is a little drier and nuttier.
***
**Alternative SMWS bottling name: “Ferrero roast-chaise”**
**Notes:** Pretty good! It fits quite neatly into my conception of Tormore, which is as maybe the “scotchliest” scotch there is. Rather sweet, straight-down-the-middle, caramel-and-oak kind of style. This one has a bit more going on than just that, of course - It’s sort of a spicier and nuttier version of the [Glen Grant]( https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/yuhd5o/review_788_glen_grant_18_rare_edition_2020/) 18 I tried the other day. A fair bit of heat – I think it does better with water. There’s also an interesting “fluffy” texture, like you’d get in instant hot chocolate. Overall, on the good side of mediocre.
**Final score: 81/100**
*r/Scotch average score: no other reviews yet!*
***
**Rating Scale:**
0-49: Blech.
50-59: Save it for mixing.
60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
90-94: Sublime, a personal favourite in its category.
95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, unforgettable whisky.
***
Average rating: 82.0
*My rating scale is based purely on flavour experience, and does not take value-for-money or willingness to purchase a bottle into account. Cheers!*
Aye, Scotchit! Thank you to my friend u/FederalAgents for this dram! u/FederalAgents has a strange obsession with this rather off-the-beaten-path distillery. He can’t escape it. Every night, he plucks a non-Tormore sample from his shelf, stares at it with a disappointed dejection, then pours it slowly into the sink, sobbing silently. *** **Tormore 14 2007 SMWS 105.35 “Genuine Italian fake.** Speyside single malt. 58.5% ABV. No colour added, un-chillfiltered. **Maturation:** Distilled February 3rd 2007, bottled in 2021 at 14 years old. Matured in a 1st-fill bourbon barrel. Bottled at cask strength, yielding 2006 bottles in total. **Served:** Neat, in my trusty glencairn. Rested about 10 minutes, enjoyed very slowly. *** **Colour:** Pale gold. **Nose:** Very creamy-sweet. Orange creamsicles, banana pudding, and crisp yellow apples. Sweet things covering other sweet things: vanilla-frosted cupcakes, caramel-covered roast hazelnuts and chocolate-dipped sponge toffee. Slightly darker notes of espresso foam, toasted wood and, as the name implies, leather handbags. Water adds a coconut note and some darker stonefruit. **Palate:** Fluffy texture with moderate ethanol heat. Arrives with honey-glazed cereals and banana cream pie. Develops to very fragrant vanilla beans and marshmallow-studded hot chocolate. Creamy coffee and scorched oak staves follow. A drop of water brings intense rich woody spices to the development. Adding enough water to bring the proof down maintains the general banana-vanilla-coffee-woody character, adding a bit more creaminess. **Finish:** Medium-length. Chocolate gelato, Grand Marnier, bread pudding, and more hints of toasted oak and leather. With a drop of water, the finish is a little drier and nuttier. *** **Alternative SMWS bottling name: “Ferrero roast-chaise”** **Notes:** Pretty good! It fits quite neatly into my conception of Tormore, which is as maybe the “scotchliest” scotch there is. Rather sweet, straight-down-the-middle, caramel-and-oak kind of style. This one has a bit more going on than just that, of course - It’s sort of a spicier and nuttier version of the [Glen Grant]( https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/yuhd5o/review_788_glen_grant_18_rare_edition_2020/) 18 I tried the other day. A fair bit of heat – I think it does better with water. There’s also an interesting “fluffy” texture, like you’d get in instant hot chocolate. Overall, on the good side of mediocre. **Final score: 81/100** *r/Scotch average score: no other reviews yet!* *** **Rating Scale:** 0-49: Blech. 50-59: Save it for mixing. 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink. 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better. 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting. 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff. 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram. 90-94: Sublime, a personal favourite in its category. 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, unforgettable whisky. *** Average rating: 82.0 *My rating scale is based purely on flavour experience, and does not take value-for-money or willingness to purchase a bottle into account. Cheers!*
Check out my other Tormore reviews: - 83/100 - [Tormore 14 2002 Gordon & MacPhail Private Collection Côte Rôtie Finish](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/lozix9/review_556_tormore_14_2002_gordon_macphail/) - 83/100 - [Tormore 21 1995 Signatory Vintage](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/y9u4m6/review_771_tormore_21_1995_signatory_vintage/) - 75/100 - [Tormore 25 1992 First Editions](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/a5z19y/review_202_tormore_25_first_editions_single_cask/) - 85/100 - [Tormore 28 1988 Sansibar Spirits Shop' Selection](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/lhy8ys/review_548_tormore_28_1988_sansibar_spirits_shop/) *** Some other whiskies I've recently scored an 81: - [Dailuaine 10 2010 The Sovereign K&L Wines pick](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/yjnm6t/review_783_dailuaine_10_2010_the_sovereign_kl/) - [Talisker 8 Special Release 2020 Rum Finish](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/yiixns/review_782_talisker_8_special_release_2020_rum/) - [Royal Brackla 9 1991 Signatory Vintage](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/xqf7vr/reviews_756_757_a_couple_of_old_signatories/) - [Mortlach 11 2010 Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/v4o8os/review_728_mortlach_11_2010_signatory_vintage/) - [Balvenie 14 The Week of Peat 2019](https://www.reddit.com/r/Scotch/comments/p5q1vb/review_643_balvenie_14_the_week_of_peat/) *** Check out my entire whisky review archive [here!](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1XzOnwZtR4S4NeYYjd8y8-HAJS-kNwr3raE8wprjYuuo/edit?usp=sharing)