Tamdhu Batch Strength tasting notes

Tamdhu Batch Strengh NAS OB 75cl 56.8% ABV
Batch 006
Oloroso Sherry oak casks, with a high proportion of first-fill casks
Bottle code L 02 05 22


Color: amber.
Nose: dates, caramel, ground pepper, rose petals, wax, marzipan, wool, nuts, hay, soy sauce, chocolate, lemon pie, iced tea, quinces, Cointreau liqueur, apricots, tobacco, and vanilla. Very pleasant, with a pronounced sherry influence.
Taste: cocoa, pears, oranges, lemons, apples, pepper, cloves, a hint of salt, and wood. Very clear, not too sweet, but not overly complex.
Finish: chocolate, cocoa, lemon zest, lime, cinnamon, pepper, apricots, and wood.
Score: 8 ½. Good. +2+1+1.

Conclusion: a pleasant, clearly young, undiluted Tamdhu, and only the fourth malt from this distillery that I've tasted. The quality of the casks is solid, bringing out enjoyable sherry notes in the aroma and cocoa in the taste as well as the aftertaste. It's also great that there's no excessive sweetness. 86/100, with an extra point for taste. Interestingly, the same release in a 70cl bottle, according to Whiskybase, has a completely different code: L 16 08 21. That suggests a 2021 bottling. But if those codes are accurate, does that mean the release for the American market was matured eight and a half months longer? That doesn't seem possible. It was probably just the whisky sitting around in a stainless steel vat before bottling. Still, why so long? Maybe we just shouldn't trust bottle codes in the first place.

Well, I got a bottle for only $50, so perhaps I shouldn't worry too much about the technical details.

Yet another Tamdhu Batch Strength tasting notes

Tamdhu Batch Strengh NAS OB 75cl 57.5% ABV
Batch 007
Oloroso Sherry oak casks, with a high proportion of first-fill casks
Bottle code L 12 12 22


Color: amber.
Nose: quite noticeable sulphur, pencil shavings, oatmeal cookies, cherries, burnt paper, dates, prunes, dried apricots, tobacco, vanilla, roasted nuts, clove, wax, wool, marshmallow, caramel, and pineapples. Well, it's really funky.
Taste: cocoa, chocolate, cherries, apples, pepper, raspberries, lemons, a bit of salt, some wood, and sulphurous notes.
Finish: cocoa, chocolate, chokeberries, pepper, lemons, cherries, honey, mint, and nuttiness.
Score: 8 ¼. Almost good. +1+1+1.

Conclusion: sulphur! Some casks are clearly contaminated. It's not a disaster, but it definitely knocks the score down. The malt itself is quite impressive and powerful; in many ways, it's similar to the previous batch. But those sulphur notes are hard to ignore, so I can only give it an 83/100.

An update from 3/26/2025: one week after opening the bottle, the sulphur notes had diminished. I'm ready to bump the score to 8 ½. +2+1+1.