Whisky: Tormore 31 Year (1990), Chapter 7

Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside

ABV: 50.2

Cask: Bourbon hogshead

Age: 31 Year (Distilled 1990, Bottled 2021)

Nose: Tropical fruits, dried wood, and subtle chalk. Fragrant and tropical with mango, passion fruit, and lemon curd upfront while a woody undercurrent of rattan and sandalwood ran in the background. Hints of lime and coconut punctuated the tropical vibes while crisp, slightly tart green apple appeared with more time.

Palate: Medium-bodied with tropical fruits, orchard fruits, and wood. An almost effervescent crispness hit the palate first with notes of dried pineapple, Korean pears, and green apples. A white-wine dryness settled on the mid-palate as apple blossom and dried mango brought a sauvignon blanc or champagne to mind. Rattan furniture and apple skins lingered at the end. A few drops of water brought out more citrus upfront and accentuated a bitterness at the end.

Finish: Lingering tannic dryness and dried tropical stone fruit.

Score: 6

Mental Image: Champagne Jello Cups

Notes: A beautifully light Tormore; I first sampled this during a weekend tasting at a hip Vietnamese fusion restaurant. The dram was a perfect start to the evening, something mellow and crisp to warm up the taste buds— the sort of dram whose subtleties you do not want to be drowned out by everything else. We had a second round of the Tormore with a bowl of crispy rice, and the dram paired quite well with the dish; the oily rice accentuated the citrusy elements of the dram so that it cleared the palate for the next round of slighter heavier fare.

I sampled this a third time a few days later when I sat to type up my notes. I found the aroma and palate much the same as before, though I was surprised that with water, the dram became sweeter and less dry, which seemed to accentuate a bitterness that lingered at the end. That is, of course, a danger with older dram; sometimes, those woody notes linger on the palate just long enough so that a trace of bitterness comes through at the end. That is not always bad, sometimes, it can provide an interesting balance or contrast, but in this case, it felt less integrated— so this was a dram that did not need (or perhaps want) water.

Overall, this was not as tropical and fruity as the last Tormore I reviewed, but it was still quite good. I would consider this a perfect summer evening dram— the sort of thing you sit and relax with as the hot day fades to cooler nights. It would also be a great candidate for my category of “bathtime drams,” the drams great for sipping while soaking— a category otherwise dominated by Glen Grant.