Tamnavulin was initially arrange in 1966. It’s located within the tiny village of Tomnavoulin, within the Speyside area of Scotland. Tamnavulin initially produced malt whisky for blenders resembling Whyte & Mackay, Crawfords, and Mackinlay’s, however in 1995 the distillery was mothballed resulting from an oversupply of whisky on the time and declining demand – a destiny shared by many distilleries through the Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties.
Yet with renewed world curiosity in whisky (and Scotch specifically), they reopened once more in 2007, they usually now retail a spread of their very personal single malt whiskies. The title “Tamnavulin” interprets to “mill on the hill” in Gaelic, and is a reference to a historic previous mill positioned on the location of the distillery.
One of many extra uncommon issues about Tamnavulin that I’ve observed is their lack of releases bearing an age assertion. When you would possibly be capable of discover the odd limited-edition launch with an age assertion, I’ve by no means seen one myself, and there don’t appear to be any listed on the distillery’s web site. I did encounter the existence of some classic releases which sound very fascinating, however these seem to solely be out there in Taiwan.
As a substitute of specializing in age, Tamnavulin look like intentionally releasing no-age-statement (NAS) whiskies that place an emphasis on a spread of several types of cask finishes (a large number of these being wine-cask finishes). Each NAS whiskies, and unique cask finishes, have grow to be more and more commonplace, and I believe there are some professionals and cons for each of those attributes.
Given the present Scotch whisky rules, for those who put an age assertion on a bottle of whisky it must be the age of the youngest whisky within the bottle. Whereas NAS whiskies can definitely comprise whisky with spectacular age statements, this may increasingly not at all times be the case. Some sceptics have argued that NAS whiskies are merely a method for distilleries to chop prices by promoting immature whisky that they can provide a flowery title. As there is no such thing as a details about the age of the whisky you’re getting in your bottle, there might be some concern in regards to the potential complexity (or lack thereof) one can look forward to finding in a NAS whisky.
But I’ve tasted quite a few NAS whiskies which were each complicated and glorious, so age clearly isn’t every part in relation to producing good whisky. Younger whisky needn’t be dangerous both. Most newly opened distilleries will initially launch NAS whiskies whereas they wait for his or her shares of whiskies to mature, and once more, I’ve tasted just a few glorious examples of those too!
A few of the professionals of NAS whiskies are that distillers arguably have better freedom to experiment in relation to mixing some youthful and older whiskies collectively. If they don’t seem to be overly targeted on sustaining an age assertion, they’ll as an alternative focus on reaching a particular flavour profile with none age-related constraints. In principle, at the least, this might result in some artistic and fascinating whiskies.
Since NAS whiskies typically comprise youthful spirit, additionally they are usually just a little extra reasonably priced than their age-statement counterparts. I regard this as one thing of a professional, as this will make some high-quality whisky extra accessible to a broader viewers (though it ought to be famous that there are many very pricy NAS whiskies on the market too).
In terms of cask finishes, and the sheer quantity of whiskies now completed in new and unique cask sorts, concern has been raised that this follow could also be extra of a advertising gimmick than a significant addition to a whisky’s character. In some circumstances there could also be one thing to this thought. By ending a whisky in an uncommon cask, one can pretty simply give one’s whisky a brand new twist, and in doing so one can doubtlessly improve gross sales with out the brand new end essentially including something of actual worth to the whisky.
But it should be stated that providing whisky fanatics one thing new needn’t be thought of a unfavourable. Like NAS whisky, fascinating cask finishes supply distilleries an opportunity to experiment and innovate. And strange cask finishes (like wine or tequila casks, for instance) may genuinely add an entire new layer of flavour complexity to a whisky, so definitely shouldn’t be dismissed proper off the bat.
Tamnavulin’s two most outstanding releases embody the Double Cask (which is matured in American oak and completed in sherry casks) and the Tamnavulin Sherry Cask Version (which is matured in American oak and completed in three several types of sherry casks – precisely what these three kinds of sherry cask are will not be specified). My focus right here is on Tamnavulin’s Sherry Cask Version. It’s formally bottled at 40% ABV, however right here in South Africa you’ll discover it bottled at 43% ABV (a quirk ensuing from native whisky rules).
Tamnavulin Sherry Cask Version – Evaluation
Color: Burnt orange.
On the nostril: Contemporary pink apples, ripe banana, and a contact of honeydew melon. Some vanilla and delicate spice. A pointy and tangy candy be aware, paying homage to lemon meringue, makes an look. Brown sugar. Settles into aromas of wealthy dates and candy raisins, with a dry and nutty be aware within the background.
Within the mouth: Initially very candy, heat and spicy – though the sweetness loses a few of its depth over time. Pretty full-bodied in texture. Malva pudding. A touch of almonds, adopted by some chocolate-coated cherries.
There’s a a lot brighter candy be aware detectable within the empty glass, which jogs my memory of some strawberry flavoured sweet.
Conclusion:
For a really reasonably priced NAS whisky (I discovered a bottle for simply over $30, a really related worth to Glenmorangie’s Triple cask reserve), this whisky exceeded my expectations. Tamnavulin’s Sherry Cask Version delivers a very good mixture of candy, spicy, and fruity notes. Should you take pleasure in whisky on the sweeter finish of the spectrum, this may very well be a good selection. I think about it will additionally function an ideal introduction to sherried whisky for anybody unfamiliar with the class. There’s sufficient happening that, even for extra skilled whisky drinkers, it ought to be an pleasing whisky – and I’d definitely be completely happy to purchase this bottle once more to maintain as one in all my common sippers.
