Berry's Tormore 1995 KWM Cask

Tasting Notes

Andrew's Tasting Note

Nose: bright, toasty, and spicy with earthy tones; barley sugars, pine resin, and French roast coffee beans before the tangy fruits emerge: Five Alive, dried apricots and mango dusted in black pepper; French pastries dusted in powdered sugar.

Palate: an explosion of flavours going in so many directions all at once it is hard to keep track of them; thick, honeyed and toasty with a touch of musty old oak (no surprise there); layered with fruits, more Five Alive, apricot jam and pushing into the tropical realm: papaya, pineapple and more mango dusted with pepper; it is decadent too, with clotted cream and creme caramel; decadent baking spices, barley sugar and subtle pine-y tones. 

Finish: warm, coating, silk, and rich; it stays decadent and fruity all the way to the end. 

Comment: something kept drawing me deeper on the nose, while the palate left me salivating for more; old Tormore can be magical, but it is very hit or miss; this one is a home run if I do say so myself!

Producer Tasting Note

"This gentle Speyside drifts out of the glass like a dream; light green fruits and a touch of wood spice, building into something perhaps more tropical with some vanilla. The palate is thick giving waves of baking spices, honey, fruit, and just a whiff of smoke on the finish."

Independent Bottler

One of our favourite independent bottlers, Berry Bros. & Rudd is a stored London-based firm which has resided at #3 St. James Street, a stone's throw from St. James Palace, since 1698. Primarily a wine merchant, they have also played a prominent role in the Scotch whisky industry. In addition to founding the Cutty Sark Blend, and managing the Glenrothes brand for 30 years, BBR is also an independent bottler. We have long been impressed not only by the quality of their independent bottlings, but also their value! 

Berry Bros. & Rudd in Their Own Words

With two Royal Warrants and more than 300 years of history, Berry Bros. & Rudd is Britain’s original wine and spirits merchant. 

We can trace our history back to 1698, when an enterprising woman called the Widow Bourne started an “Italian grocer’s” at No.3 St James’s Street, selling tea, snuff, spices and the most fashionable drink of the day, coffee. The sign of the coffee mill still hangs outside our premises at No.3 today, in tribute to our roots.

In due course, our focus shifted to something a little bit stronger. As wine became important to the business, so too did spirits, and we started bottling casks under our label in the early 19th century, making us Britain’s oldest independent spirits bottler. Three centuries on, the family business continues to flourish, with its heart still very much at No.3.

While much has changed over the years, we are still owned and managed by members of the Berry and Rudd families, and we continue to supply the British Royal Family, as we have done since the reign of King George III. We still, from time to time, weigh customers on a giant set of coffee scales, a tradition which began in the 1760s, with Lord Byron, William Pitt and Beau Brummell among those who have had their weights recorded in our ledgers. Most importantly, we still believe that everything you should look for in a wine or spirit comes down to one simple question: “Is it good to drink?”