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Tomatin debuts Decades II

Highland distillery Tomatin has released a new limited edition single malt whisky, which has been matured in a variety of casks from the last five decades.

Tomatin Decades II combines five decades of whisky

The launch of Decades II follows the original Decades expression in 2011, which was launched to honour previous distillery manager Douglas Campbell.

Decades II pays tribute to the “generations of staff that to this day remain custodians of this exceptional Scotch whisky”.

The new expression is a marriage of 21 casks from key periods over the past 50 years. It has been matured in a mix of Scotch, ex-Bourbon, ex-Sherry, and re-charred French oak casks.

The casks used for maturation include refill Bourbon hogsheads containing liquid distilled in 1973, 1975 and 1977, and first-fill oloroso Sherry butts from 1988.

Other casks include first-fill Bourbon barrels distilled in 1995 and recharred verdejo wine barrels distilled in 2000 and 2009. This was followed by second-fill French oak barrels from 2013.

Graham Eunson, distillery operations director at Tomatin, said: “Balancing the flavour profiles of just a few casks can be a real challenge, so to marry five decades of Tomatin whisky in such a way that each cask complements the next is a testament to the team, both those who work at Tomatin today and those that worked at Tomatin before us, who distilled and laid down some of the casks we’ve used.

“We’ve been the custodians of exceptional Scotch for generations, and that care and experience is really showcased by Decades II.”

The resulting liquid is said to have “initial bursts of fruits giving way to hints of sweet pastry and wood shavings, and aromas of both cooked fruits and floral coconut tones”.

On the palate, the whisky has notes of Christmas cake, maple syrup and red berries, followed by a “long tropical finish”.

Bottled at 46% ABV, Decades II is limited to 3,600 bottles. It is priced at £175 (US$225).

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