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Once again grabbed by the twin punch of opportunity and convenience, I was stopping in for my weekly $1.50 glizzy and saw a fresh pallet of these sitting in the Costco Liquor store. For around $20, I'll try pretty much anything. I hadn't heard of Tullibardine before but they hail from the village of Blackford in Perthshire at the site of an old brewery, visited by King James IV of Scotland all the way back in 1488. A distillery was constructed after the end of World War II, though it lay dormant for 10 years until a group of investors rebooted it in 2003. The distillery is currently operated by French wine group Terroir Distillers and features a cooperage, maturation warehouses, blending, and bottling all on location. The only part of the process that does not happen at the site is malting. Tullibardine Artisan is a US-Exclusive offering aged in ex-bourbon casks. Perthshire is part of the Highlands Scotch region, so I would expect little to no peat and the profile to be rather light, potentially floral. Artisan, first release in 2021, is a budget friendly entry point into the Tullibardine lineup which features as 12-year and a 12-year Doublewood iteration, both in the $50-$60 range. Will it be delicate and mild or overly youthful and astringent? Let's find out!
🛒Sourced: $23.99 - Costco Perimeter, GA - 750ml - Looks like Total Wine also has it for about $5 more. The original release had it marked with an SRP of $30.
🧪Proof: 80 proof, 40% ABV
🎨Color: Y3 - Fairly light
🥔Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley - A single malt for less than $30 is remarkable. No age statement at this price point. Water is sourced from Danny Burn, the same source as the Highland Spring water company.
👃Nose: Very soft with mince pie, raisins, and honey. Pleasant and easy on the nose though a bit wispy.
😜Palate: Definitely on the thin side, currants, nettles, and apricot. You do get a honey sweetness that continues into the finish.
💦Finish: Sweet golden raisins and honeycomb are gone in an instant. There is a small pleasant lingering warmth after the flavor is gone, but it's a single candle's worth of fire. Maybe a little bit of burnt popcorn.
🏆 Overall: 5.0/10 - Easy Drinking - I did a blind of this and Dewar's White Label (the bar against which I measure all value whiskies), and the results were closer than I expected. White label takes the nose hands down; it's just simply an order of magnitude more punchy that the Tulli and carries some roast nut and savories in addition to the sweets. On the palate, the Tullibardine is much more fruit forward and has a slight bite at the end in transition to the palate. Here the Artisan Single Malt does outshine somewhat with its more dynamic palate. The Dewar's is more consistent with its sweet citrus sustained note, and I found myself having to take less of a huge gulp of it to get peak flavor. You can comfortably swig a generous mouthful of the Tullibardine with no need for recourse. At the finish, the Dewar's offers more flavor but both are quite short indeed. Overall, the two are very mild and gentle scotches that tend towards sweet fruit or floral profiles. Tullibardine Artisan Highland Single Malt avoids being abrasive and youthful, though it pays some points in overall flavor to do so, a solid bottle for casual sipping if you don't want to break the bank.
💵Would buy again? If I was out of white label and saw it on the shelf I could be tempted, but Dewar's has a 1.75L that's usually $30 minus a typical $5 rebate. For very similar taste profile and experience, I'm probably optimizing for the handle over this bottle.
⚖️Rating Scale:
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume it by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws | Struggle to get through the bottle
4 | Serviceable | Mixing or ice recommended.
5 | Good | Drinkable Neat | An agreeable dram indeed.
6 | Very Good | Any flaws offset by interesting flavors | A cut above.
7 | Great | You find yourself reaching for this one often | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Serve to Impress Guests | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite | You guard this bottle jealously.