The Toshan Man

Congratulations!

On Saturday, September 2, 2023, I was one of the guests at the festival at Auchentoshan in honor of their 200th anniversary. The doors of the distillery were wide open, while food trucks and cocktail stands had been planted around the distillery and between the warehouses. Just in front of the distillery was a large stage where local artists showed the best of themselves. It was a big party! But the icing on the cake was of course the special limited edition that you could only get your hands on at that time (although I don't think all 573 are gone yet, so if you go to Glasgow in the near future and pop into their shop, you might be able to snatch up a bottle... although it costs £400). On June 9, 1997, a large oloroso sherry cask – a puncheon – was put to sleep and bottled as a 25-year-old malt especially for the occasion. At cask strength, of course.

Deliciously dark sweet and layered nose on soft sultanas, plums and cherries with some orange zest and hazelnuts. The oloroso is obvious and gives the malt a rich aroma. You can already tell on the nose that this has become a very spicy Toshan.

Excellent! Succulent and rich on blackcurrants, dark chocolate with Morello cherries, oranges, salted butter and cocoa. Amazingly, no tannins, so soft and fruity is this malt. Very full-bodied and almost creamy. A real powerhouse.

The finish is long and excellent. Spicy and fruity, creamy and round.

It is not surprising that such a beautiful cask was chosen for this special occasion, of course. And even though the price is a bit on the high side, it is worth every penny! I'm honoured to have been there and to have been able to score the bottle.