Tobermory 8 2008 Archives

Thanks to @scotchguy.to for sharing a dram of this with me.

Something I’m always looking for is a brash, young, interesting whisky. Usually, that means a full maturation. Usually means something beyond an ex-bourbon cask, something peated, something with an odd mashbill. It doesn’t always mean it will work. And sometimes something else works.

So a friend brought out Tobermory 8 2008 Archives at a recent tasting. I’ve never had a Tobermory this young. And he goes after the young whiskies. But it’s a sherry cask.

Can a young, full strength Tobermory be good? Normally I go after older ones, where some of that famous funk has developed into the more socially acceptable blue cheese note.

So how did this do? No thoughts on it going in, let’s see how it tastes, shall we?

Price: Sold out

Vintage: 02.10.2008

Bottled: 08.05.2017

Cask Type: Sherry butt

Cask Number 900154

Number of bottles: 300

Region: Island

Abv: 68.2%

Colour: 10YR 6/8

Nose: Strawberry, peach pie, butter, vanilla, mint

Wow. Fruity. Big fruity flavours. Lots of sugar, butter, more sugar. It’s all well integrated, but… damn, this isn’t subtle at all. It’s as subtle as screaming your own name while jerking off.

Water brings out more spice, which is nice. Again, not subtle.

Taste: Mint cream, homemade cinnamon buns, sour cream, nectarines

This whole whisky punches you in the face and then your mom in the face. Sour notes, creamy aspects, lots of spice, more butter.

Yeah, it just punched your mom in the face again. While I was explaining it. It’s a face puncher.

Finish: Peach, butter, earthy peat, sour cream, cinnamon, strawberry

Bit more earth, and… yup, still punching your mom in the face, let’s just continue while it does that.

More of that strong, big flavour. Lots more of that strawberry dessert, but not amazing strawberry dessert. Think eating at a diner where you’re not expecting lots of quality but it’s good enough and you ordered dessert and now you have diabetes.

Your mother would have said not to, but she’s busy… being punched in the face.

Conclusion: Brash, Brock Lesnar type of dram. Nothing subtle, nothing hiding. It’s brash. It’s big. There’s a lot of strawberry going on, there’s a ton of earth… Seriously it’s what I want in sherry bombs. Seriously why can’t I find these anymore? Oh, yeah, they take time and effort and don’t do as well on margin.

Getting back to this, if you’re looking for a normally funky Tobermory, it’s not that. There’s some, but it’s all creamy and not really the normal funky butthole flavour. It goes in a different direction and should be tried if you like sherry. Or hate subtly. Or your mom. No judging.

84/100

Scotch review #1110, Island review #122, Whisky review #1725