Origin: Speyside (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Elixir Distillers
Official website: tormore.com
Tormore is one of those distilleries whose reputation has suffered from being created to supply blends for its owners, initially the founders Long John International, and later Allied Distillers, which was then acquired by Pernod Ricard.
We have to wait until 2022 for the distillery to make headlines again, thanks to its acquisition by the Singh brothers, founders of the well-known online shop The Whisky Exchange, who, through their company Elixir Distillers, have decided to become direct producers alongside an already long and successful career as independent bottlers.
Alongside the new Portintruan distillery built on Islay, Tormore therefore becomes the business card for the Singh brothers to showcase their idea of single malt, and while waiting to be able to market the whisky distilled under their supervision, they followed up with some limited releases (the Legacy series) and a revision of the core range at the beginning of 2026, with three standard bottlings: the NAS (no age statement) Timeless, a twelve-year-old and a sixteen-year-old.
Tormore Timeless Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 43%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon and ex-Sherry
Average price: € 50.00
Conceived as an introductory and “easy” whisky, it is primarily matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks with the addition of a smaller percentage of ex-sherry casks, combining some well-aged stocks held in Tormore’s warehouses.
Tasting Notes
Sharp and fruity as you would expect from a young Speysider, a nose that focuses on the freshness of white fruit (peach, apple, conference pear, apricot, banana) and almonds, with a touch of lime and lychee, all wrapped around a base of cereals and yeast. In the background, the sweetness of vanilla and acacia honey, which grow in intensity over time. Green tea, a hint of spices (nutmeg, cinnamon) and a light note of wood complete the picture, simple yet appealing.
Light on the palate, with grains and nuts (almonds, walnuts) leading the impressions, while the fruity and sweet components move into the background, leaving ample room for herbal aspects between tea and tobacco leaves. It remains fresh and easy-drinking, with a rather lively alternation of soft and pleasantly bitter notes, thanks also to the friendly contribution of black pepper, ginger, and nutmeg.
Finish not very long and dry, with spices, grains, herbal notes, white fruit and nuts.
Conclusions: A whisky that does its job in introducing the distillery’s profile with grace and compactness, without highs or lows, straightforward and direct. Hard to ask for more.
Vote: 83/100
Tormore 12yo Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 46%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon, ex-Cream Sherry and New
Average price: € 70.00
The first age statement in the core range, which changes the maturation style by adding to the ever-dominant first-fill ex-bourbon casks some new toasted and charred American oak casks, as well as others seasoned with cream sherry (a mix of Oloroso and PX).
Tasting Notes
Warmer and rounder than its younger sibling, on the nose it returns to the theme of fruit, both fresh and cooked, bringing with it baked goods such as strudel, banana bread and citrus candied-fruit plumcake. In the background, Jaffa cake, a sprinkle of spices (nutmeg, cinnamon), wood shavings, almond brittle and vanilla. Composed and elegant.
Spices (black pepper, ginger, cinnamon) and dark chocolate pave the way for the palate, flowing with good creaminess to bring more fruit now leaning toward pastry notes, with plenty of sponge cake and shortcrust pastry alongside. Quince apple tart, trifle, marzipan, Bounty bar and orange zest lead the drinking experience, keeping the wood in the background along with a faint menthol impression that at times recalls After Eight. On the finish, a note appears somewhere between chalk and mineral.
Finish fairly long, picking up the threads of the tasting, accompanied by that mineral sensation, carrying along dried fruit and some vegetal impressions.
Review: Definitely on another level, a richer and more complex dram, not particularly deep but full-bodied, that starts to show the distillery’s muscles.
Vote: 85/100
Tormore 16yo Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 46%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Cream Sherry and Oloroso Sherry
Average price: € 90.00
The ex-bourbon casks that had dominated until now are completely abandoned in favor of ex-sherry casks: still ex-cream (60%, from American oak) and butt oloroso (40%, from French oak), used for transfers and finishing.
Tasting Notes
Nose rather intense and spicy, with rye bread, blackberry plum cake, candied orange, baked apple, dried dates and a generous handful of cinnamon, nutmeg and cumin. In the background, gingerbread, raisins, toffee, muscovado sugar and a faint menthol note that lingers on the finish. Bitter orange marmalade. A sherried profile rendered in chiaroscuro, with plenty of personality.
On the palate, it follows a more familiar score, where the spicy entry (which adds black pepper to the olfactory ensemble) paves the way for dried fruit (raisins, plums, dates), red fruits (blackberries, blueberries), baked goods (apple strudel, plum cake, a hint of rye bread) and maraschino. Brushstrokes of sweet licorice, candied citrus and wood. An impression of panettone.
Finish fairly long, with spices, red fruits, nuts, bread and candied fruit.
Conclusions: More interesting on the nose than on the palate, where it loses some of the character it shows in the aromatic vapors, following the path of a standard sherried whisky, perhaps with a bit too much influence from the wood.
Vote: 84/100