Tomatin Wrapped: Our Year in Review

January:

To celebrate the Year of the Dragon for Chinese New Year we launched a limited edition pack of the Tomatin 12 Year Old which was available for sale in China and directly at our Distillery Visitor Centre.
 

February:

2024 saw Richard Noble, our head warehouseman, celebrate an incredible 50 years at Tomatin. We thought it would be fitting for Richard to describe his time at Tomatin in his own words:  

“Working at Tomatin is more than a job, it’s a whole way of life. I live in the village of Tomatin with my wife, it’s where we raised our daughters, and when I am not at the distillery, I’m usually out in the local countryside hill walking or fishing. 

“Throughout my time working at Tomatin, I have seen many changes across the distillery. However, what has not changed is the dedication and hard work of our team, and our deeply rooted connection to Tomatin.” 

March:

Ask anyone two of the things that Scotland is renowned for, and there’s a good chance they’ll reply with “whisky and golf”. With that in mind, we thought that given March is Scottish Golf Tourism Month, we’d share a couple of our favourite moments this year that combined golf and whisky.  

A staple of our calendar for several years has been Tomatin’s sponsorship of the Tomatin Highland Golf Links Pro Am. Competing across three world-class courses, Royal Dornoch, Cabot Highlands, and Nairn Golf Club, the competition is one of Scotland’s premier golf competitions. In keeping with our ‘To What Matters’ ethos, this year, we donated a bottle of Tomatin 36yo for raffle, with the proceedings supporting My Name’5 Doddie Foundation. 

During the year, we also held a number of Tomatin golf days, which provided a great chance for the team to get together for some (mostly friendly) competition. These golf days saw everything from bandits to bogies, a few birdies, and most importantly, plenty of banter between colleagues. 

April:

April saw an exciting addition Tomatin Distillery, with our new distillery manager, Jamie Muir, joining the team. Jamie is from the Islands and began his production career at Jura Distillery before working at several other distilleries prior to joining Tomatin.  

As Distillery Manager, Jamie oversees the entire production process, from mashing and distilling to managing Tomatin’s substantial warehousing operations. With years of experience in the whisky industry and a keen eye for detail, Jamie ensures that every step upholds the quality and tradition that Tomatin is known for. 

Jamie has quickly become a key part of our community, living on-site, and has already made a large impact in his relatively short time at Tomatin.  

May:

The Tasting Alliance announced the highly anticipated results of the 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and we were delighted to share that Tomatin 12 Year Old, Tomatin 18 Year Old, Tomatin 45 Year Old (Travel Retail Exclusive) were all awarded with the prestigious “Double Gold” medal. As this is Tomatin 18 Year Old’s third consecutive year of winning Double Gold, it has upgraded its award status to “Platinum” for the first time. 

Judges at SFWSC also gave much praise to Cù Bòcan, our lightly peated single malt brand distilled at the Tomatin distillery in limited batches every winter, focusing on unusual cask maturations.  Judges awarded the Cù Bòcan 15 Year Old “Double Gold” gold a second year running, and Cù Bòcan 12 Year Old Batch #1, which is finished in Caribbean Rum casks, with “Gold”. 

June:

In June, we announced the return of The Antiquary, as the brand relaunched with three new expressions, each with a bold new look and vision. 

Following in the footsteps of The Antiquary’s founders, J&W Hardie, who were known for being innovative for their time, the latest releases focus on flavours that appeal to modern drinkers while reflecting the history of the brand and its reputation for offering an unusually high malt content. 

The trio of exceptional blends use the finest Highland and Speyside malts with Lowland grains.

July:

July saw us unveil an impressive trio of new Tomatin single malts, The Sherry Collection. 

This limited-edition series exhibits the unique influence of different casks, showcasing classic Tomatin whisky matured in Manzanilla, Palo Cortado, and Pedro Ximénez butts. 

Fortified wine has played a role in the creation of our whisky throughout its history with the distillery using sherry casks sourced from Jerez in maturation for more than a century. 

However, The Sherry Collection has been created to celebrate modern sherry culture, which has seen a resurgence, thanks partly to the growing tapas scene and the evolving food and drink desires of consumers seeking alternative choices. 

Our award-winning team have refined three unique expressions, each bottled at different ages to showcase the whiskies at their peak.   

August:

2024 marked 20 years of Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival – without a doubt, the biggest party in the Highlands. We were thrilled to be a part of it again at our Tomatin Bothy Bar, providing delicious drams, tasty cocktails and of course great craic (with some surprise live performances from acts such as Tartan Paint and The Laurettes thrown in for extra measure!). 

To mark the 20th anniversary of the festival, which holds a special place in our hearts due it taking place only 30 miles away from Tomatin Distillery, we were delighted to release an incredibly rare single cask bottled exclusively for Belladrum Festival. This whisky was matured in a first-fill Oloroso Sherry cask for over twenty years, with only 153 bottles produced, and we were ecstatic that everyone loved it as much as we did, selling out in record time. 

September:

In September we welcomed new students to our Ambassador Academy. Our recruits travelled from across the globe, including Malaysia, Switzerland and Poland and spent the week taking a deep dive in our brands, people, and place.  

Over the 3-day course, our ambassadors learn the tools and skills they need to be confident with our brands including learning about the whisky making process, the history of our distillery, story telling and masterclass hosting training.  

October:

We were thrilled to share the news that following on from being awarded 98 points and a Gold Outstanding award earlier this year at the International Wine and Spirits Competition, it was announced in October that Legacy has gone on to be awarded the IWSC Trophy for no age statement single malt Scotch! 

The judges said Legacy had “succulent” aromas of lychee, vanilla and cinnamon, and a “fabulously luscious flavour profile with a heavenly finish”. 

A Trophy Winner represents the best of the best, awarded to products that have excelled in the competition, and is awarded only to products that demonstrate exceptional quality beyond the standard gold or silver medals. The beverage must be near perfect in terms of craftsmanship, balance, and complexity. 

November:

As part of our promotion of the new Sherry Collection, we partnered with three sherry bars in London to create our own experience and immerse media in the bonds between sherry and Scotch. In each location, our attendees tasted a PX, Palo Cortado and Manzanilla sherry while hearing from a representative from the bar about their view on the resurgence of sherry.  

Check out your local sherry trail here!

December Part 1:

Allan Bartlett, our cooper at Tomatin Distillery, has been named Cooper of the Year in the Scottish round of the Icons of Whisky 2025! 

To be named Cooper of the Year recognises Allan’s excellence in the art of coopering, as well as his commitment to ensuring the casks we use are of the best quality. 

Allan has been Tomatin’s cooper for the last 15 years. He trained under former head cooper Iain Duthie, who held the post for almost four decades.  

As head cooper, Allan is responsible for inspecting each of our casks before it is filled and making repairs where necessary. This year alone, he has inspected and repaired 2,500 casks! 

Beyond his coopering expertise, Allan is a valued member of our tight-knit Tomatin community. Having grown up on the distillery grounds, he joined Tomatin straight from school and still lives on-site, as do more than half our workforce. 

December Part 2:

Inverness Caledonian Thistle is marking its 30th anniversary with the release of two exclusive single malts in collaboration with the Tomatin Distillery: a limited edition 30-year-old malt priced at £1,000 per bottle (with only 10 available) and a 21-year-old malt priced at £300 per bottle with only 94 bottles produced. The initiative is a celebration of the club’s legacy and an effort to generate support during its ongoing financial struggles as it seeks to emerge from administration and reclaim a place in the Scottish Championship.

John MacDonald, the first chairman of Inverness Caledonian Thistle and managing director of Tomatin at the time, played a crucial role in the club’s early days. His leadership helped establish a foundation for the club’s growth and connection to the local community. MacDonald’s ties to both entities underscore the significance of this collaboration, linking the club’s origins to a respected Highland distillery

Customers can purchase directly from the Visitor Centre in person or by phoning+44(0)1463 248 144 

They can then collect their purchase from the Visitor Centre, the ICT club shop, or have it posted via DHL with free P&P within the UK.