Tormore is one of Speyside’s most recognisable distilleries and one of its least known at the same time. The reason for the recognition factor is its unusual architecture – a cross between a grand Neo-Georgian mansion and a Victorian power station, with notes of Art Deco and a hint of Modernism. It opened in 1960 and was designed by Sir Albert Richardson, who was also responsible for the former Financial Times offices on Cannon Street, Bracken House – which also sports a copper roof turned green with verdigris over the decades. If you follow the River Spey between Grantown and Rothes, you will not miss the huge edifice.

You are less likely to have ever spotted a whisky from Tormore. It was established to provide malt whisky for blends, first for Long John and later for Chivas Brothers blends. Only occasionally has it been bottled under its own name – mainly by independent bottlers but briefly by Pernod Ricard, Chivas’s parent company, which bought Tormore in 2005.

In 2022, a more significant change took place. West London-born brothers Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh sold The Whisky Exchange, the online and physical specialist spirits retailer they founded together, to Pernod Ricard. As often happens, some assets went the other way – among them, the Tormore distillery and inventory. The Singhs’ vision for their company, Elixir Distillers, previously an independent bottler, was to fulfil the expectation of its name. Work on the from-scratch Portintruan Distillery on Islay is almost finished. But they also wanted to take over an existing operator. 

Sukhinder Singh and Elixir’s master blender Oliver Chilton are renowned for their encyclopaedic knowledge of whisky, especially Scotch, but equally for their forthright opinions – scathing on the overrated, passionate champions of the underappreciated. For them, Tormore’s new-make spirit fell firmly in the latter category – a new-make spirit with a great, medium-bodied fruit-and-nut Speyside character.

Because it was aimed at blends, Tormore was traditionally aged exclusively in bourbon barrels. Chilton and distillery manager Polly Logan has set about recasking much of the existing stock to explore the effect of different cask types on the whisky. The trio of releases that form The Blueprint are literally a taste of things to come. They are 10Yos, which spent the last two years in either first-fill bourbon barrels, bespoke toasted American oak or a cream sherry butt (likely a blend of oloroso and Pedro Ximenéz).

Tasting notes

Tormore Blueprint: 10-Year-Old Bourbon Barrel 

Pear and walnut skin notes are immediately noticeable on the nose – the signature of Tormore past and, we’re told, future – plus a little toasted coconut sweetness. On the palate, the pear is slathered in custard, with the addition of nectarines and baking flavours – an American peach pie with walnuts in the pastry. At bottling strength, there’s a hint of citrus and peppery zing… but don’t be tempted to water it down too much.

Tormore Blueprint: 10-Year-Old Toasted Barrel 

The virgin American oak barrels – toasted and charred to detailed specifications (long and slow for the former, medium for the latter – are intended to give the spirit better access to the oak’s wood sugars. It certainly does that; there is an irresistible salted-caramel depth to this version. In addition, there is an uptick in soft spices, reminiscent of rye whiskey. The citrus sharpness has morphed into caramelised oranges from a 1970s dessert trolley.

Tormore Blueprint: 10-Year-Old Cream Sherry Cask 

This would have scared your Harvey’s Bristol Cream-loving great-aunt, but the unfashionable blend of sweet and dry sherries really works well on this whisky. It offers dried fruit and candied peels to balance the orchard-fruity and nutty core-character. It’s a warmer, rounder, more viscous version.

Each Tormore Blueprint whisky is bottled at 48% ABV and has a RRP of around £60. There are only 1,500 of each, available from specialist retailers.

elixirdistillers.com