Tomintoul Tarn /40%/ – Tomintoul single malt has been marketed as “the Gentle Dram” and indeed, it is arguably the smoothest whisky from Speyside. The distillery, however has been producing batches of peated spirit on annual bases employing barley malted up to 50ppm phenols. In 2005 the company introduced Old Ballantruan brand, a peated version of Tomintoul and two years later Tomintoul Peaty Tang joined the pack. Tomintoul Tarn is another peated expression from the distillery, this time part of Travel Retail range. The whisky was aged exclusively in ex-bourbon barrels and bottled without age statement at 40% abv. The name ‘tarn’ comes from the old Norse word ‘tjorn’ and means ‘pond’ and many ‘tarns’ in the area are surrounded by ancient peat.
Nose: malted barley, peat smoke, hay, heather, pine needles, honey, vanilla, apples, pears and delicate nutty and oaky notes.
Palate: sweet and smoky, breakfast cereals, hard candy, vanilla, roasted peanuts, licorice, white pepper, apples, hints of hay and toasted oak.
Finish: medium long, with notes of peat smoke, vanilla, hard candy, sponge cake, orchard fruits and oak.
