Welcome back to another fun tasting of two single malts, where I get to explore the minuscule differences between a carefully selected pairing when drinking them side-by-side, take down these notes in real-time as I sip on the whiskies, pick out a winner, and hopefully learn something new along the way. If you enjoy this particular pairing, be sure to stick around for other write-ups! Today, we are on dram #13 from Cask Explorers’ 2022 Advent Calendar (Ruby Edition), and it’s an 18-year-old single malt from the Tomatin distillery. Alrighty then! I haven’t had this one before, so this adventure of going through the drams in unexpected order is working out wonders so far. To find a perfect contender, I walk over to my shelves and pick out an unopened bottle of an 18-year-old whisky from the Jura distillery. I’m ready to go for this one, are you? Let’s do it! But first, we need music! Now playing: The Future Sound of London – Environment 7.003.

I’ve had some whiskies from the Tomatin before. It all started when I saw this amazing 1977 bottle for about £2,500. It definitely looked great, but what did it taste like for that price tag? So, I decided to explore the various Tomatin offerings first. I tried the entry-level Legacy and didn’t like it. I’ve paired the Tomatin’s 12-year-old Cognac Finish versus the 13-year-old Fino Sherry Finish and wasn’t blown away by either. Their experiments with the Cù Bòcan range were interesting but nothing I would sink my teeth into. I somewhat enjoyed the Tomatin 21-year-old in the context of an Undisclosed TBWC bottling, but I couldn’t find it anywhere, so it was hard to make a call. Finally, I popped a cork on a 13-year-old Fino Shery Cask limited edition from 2006. I quite liked it, but I haven’t had the chance to pair it with another. So, now we’re somewhere in the middle, with the 18-year-old from the core range, bottled at 46%, un-coloured and non-chill filtered, so that’s an integrity bottling with a star! This whisky was matured in “traditional oak casks” [I do not like this vague term] and then finished in first-fill oloroso sherry butts. I like the colour and the nose – it’s promising to be a fully rounded, somewhat sweet and chewy malt. There are dry raisins, apricots and even hints of chocolate on the horizon. It’s lovely, and now that expectations are set high, let’s check out the contender!

The Jura distillery has been a favourite for many years. Before I even understood the geography of Scotch whisky and the location of this tiny island north of Islay, I fell in love with everything it had to give. I finally had a chance to visit the distillery and bring home a cherished peated bottle, which I sip on special occasions [and, okay, I even had a bit today]. The 18-year-old first appeared on these pages back in 2022 when I compared it side by side with another 18-year-old, this time from Highland Park. I’ll cut to the chase and tell you that it was a draw. But… and this is a big “but”! As I got deeper into understanding what makes a better whisky, I learned that Jura is chill-filtered and it’s coloured. What? I started questioning the practices and reasons for this move. I tried to put aside my disposition and just enjoy the drink for what it was. But somehow, that nagging thought just lingered there, and I tended to gravitate only to independent bottlers of Jura or to limited editions, like the one I have from Tastival distilled in 1997. On the latter, the label clearly states that it is of natural colour and non-chill filtered, so why has this 18-year-old been mucked with then, I ask? Alrighty, we’ll move on. I will ignore the colour and explore the nose. It’s slightly funky – no doubt attributed to the fact that this bottle sat on my shelves for a few years. I’ll let it breathe and hope that I can get past that. Otherwise, this tasting will be void. I’d have to return another day (or week) after the bottle would have settled. Let’s try it first, before the Tomatin, and see if I’ll need to return.

Nope, it’s pretty good. The flavour is all there, and just like I remember from before. It’s full and sweet, with deep notes of caramel and toffee. Bottled at only 44% ABV (I would have preferred at least another two, please), it goes down easy, and I do not need to add more water. Let’s jump to the Tomatin and see what’s up after this sip. It’s slightly woodsier and leans a bit more towards bourbon. There is that sweetness that I picked up on the nose, and it’s pleasant, with just a touch of bitterness to keep me on my toes. Let’s move back to the Jura. The funk is dissipating on the nose. You can read my write-up on Bottle Shock, Oxidation, Sulphur and More to understand what that’s all about. This whisky has been matured in American ex-bourbon white oak barrels and then “enriched by” [I don’t know what that means – maybe “finished in”?] unspecified red wine casks. The Jura’s softer but not thicker, and the minuscule difference in ABV makes a difference in the arrival and a much shorter and less oily finish. I’ll take a sip of San Pellegrino and return to the Tomatin for the final sip. Mmm. I really like the nose here. The flavour also comes in honeyed, definitely chocolate, as I’ve said before, and it’s a very pleasant dram that I could surely drink again.

Distillery / Region	Tomatin / Highlands	Jura / Island
Producer	The Tomatin Distillery, Co. Ltd	Whyte & Mackay Ltd
Bottler / Series	Distillery bottling / core range	Distillery bottling / core range
Stated Age / Vintage	18 years old / non-vintage	18 years old / non-vintage
Cask type	Oak casks + first-fill Oloroso butt	American ex-bourbon white oak + red wine cask
ABV / Cask Strength	46% / No	44% / No
Non-chill filtered/ Uncoloured	Yes / Yes 🌟	No / No
Price	£119	£75
Did it win? / Did I like it?	Yes / Yes – delicious dram	No / I used to; not this time
Would I buy it? / Recommend it?	Yes / Yes	No / But yes, I would recommend it!

So there you have it, folks – another interesting pairing! How much is the Tomatin anyway? Okay, it’s £119. And what about the Jura? Oh, it’s only £75. Now, that’s a bit of a surprise, to be honest. In fact, on Amazon, it’s only £66 (and no, Tomatin is not there at all). Let’s jump to the conclusion for today. The Jura’s just not there on par with the Tomatin. I don’t know if it’s the difference in ABV [possibly], the chill-filtration [probably], or the added colouring [not-necesserily], but it just comes in a little short. Between the two, I definitely would reach out for one more dram of that Tomatin. So, with that said, I’ll pause here and proclaim the Tomatin 18-year-old as the winner of this round.