Tamdhu 1989 / 34 Year Old / Cask #12881 / Connoisseurs Choice Upper Speyside Whisky

Andre Dubois — One of the best Connoisseurs Choice picks I've tried

9/10

Gordon & MacPhail really nailed it with cask #12881. Thirty-four years in wood and it still has punch at 54.8% — nothing tired or overly tannic about it. I get marmalade, baking spices, and a lovely waxy quality on the nose. Added a few drops of water and it opened up even more. Stunning stuff.

Mei-Lin Wu — One of the best Connoisseurs Choice picks I've tried

9/10

Gordon & MacPhail really nailed it with cask #12881. Thirty-four years in wood and it still has punch at 54.8% — nothing tired or overly tannic about it. I get marmalade, baking spices, and a lovely waxy quality on the nose. Added a few drops of water and it opened up even more. Stunning stuff.

Victor Osei — One of the best Connoisseurs Choice picks I've tried

9/10

Gordon & MacPhail really nailed it with cask #12881. Thirty-four years in wood and it still has punch at 54.8% — nothing tired or overly tannic about it. I get marmalade, baking spices, and a lovely waxy quality on the nose. Added a few drops of water and it opened up even more. Stunning stuff.

Aria Kim — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Look, it's a lovely whisky. Honey, stewed plums, old leather — proper aged Speyside stuff. But at £950 for a single cask bottling I keep thinking about what else I could buy for that money. Three or four excellent 18-year-olds, probably. I'd recommend trying it at a bar before committing to a bottle.

Elena Vasquez — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Look, it's a lovely whisky. Honey, stewed plums, old leather — proper aged Speyside stuff. But at £950 for a single cask bottling I keep thinking about what else I could buy for that money. Three or four excellent 18-year-olds, probably. I'd recommend trying it at a bar before committing to a bottle.

Marcus Chen — Beautiful but hard to justify the price

7/10

Look, it's a lovely whisky. Honey, stewed plums, old leather — proper aged Speyside stuff. But at £950 for a single cask bottling I keep thinking about what else I could buy for that money. Three or four excellent 18-year-olds, probably. I'd recommend trying it at a bar before committing to a bottle.

Isla McCallister — Worth every penny for a special occasion

9/10

Picked this up for my 60th birthday and I'm glad I did. At 34 years old the sherry influence is incredible — dried fruits, dark chocolate, and this lingering spice that just keeps going. The 54.8% ABV carries it beautifully neat, no water needed. Not an everyday dram at £950 but for what you're getting, I've seen worse value from other aged Speysides.

Tariq Hassan — Worth every penny for a special occasion

9/10

Picked this up for my 60th birthday and I'm glad I did. At 34 years old the sherry influence is incredible — dried fruits, dark chocolate, and this lingering spice that just keeps going. The 54.8% ABV carries it beautifully neat, no water needed. Not an everyday dram at £950 but for what you're getting, I've seen worse value from other aged Speysides.

Astrid Nilsen — Worth every penny for a special occasion

9/10

Picked this up for my 60th birthday and I'm glad I did. At 34 years old the sherry influence is incredible — dried fruits, dark chocolate, and this lingering spice that just keeps going. The 54.8% ABV carries it beautifully neat, no water needed. Not an everyday dram at £950 but for what you're getting, I've seen worse value from other aged Speysides.

Haruki Sato — Smooth old Speyside with depth

8/10

Tried this neat at a friend's house and spent the next hour just nosing the empty glass. Rich toffee and dried apricot with a hint of smoke that surprised me for a Speyside. It drinks easier than the ABV suggests. I wouldn't buy a bottle at that price point but I'm very happy I got to experience it.

Thomas Weber — Smooth old Speyside with depth

8/10

Tried this neat at a friend's house and spent the next hour just nosing the empty glass. Rich toffee and dried apricot with a hint of smoke that surprised me for a Speyside. It drinks easier than the ABV suggests. I wouldn't buy a bottle at that price point but I'm very happy I got to experience it.

Camila Ortiz — Smooth old Speyside with depth

8/10

Tried this neat at a friend's house and spent the next hour just nosing the empty glass. Rich toffee and dried apricot with a hint of smoke that surprised me for a Speyside. It drinks easier than the ABV suggests. I wouldn't buy a bottle at that price point but I'm very happy I got to experience it.

James Okafor — Classic old Speyside character

8/10

Had a dram of this at a tasting event and was impressed. The nose is all Christmas cake and polished oak, exactly what you'd hope for from an 80s distillation. I found it dries out slightly on the finish which kept it from being a perfect ten for me, but the mid-palate richness is fantastic.

Idris Ibrahim — Classic old Speyside character

8/10

Had a dram of this at a tasting event and was impressed. The nose is all Christmas cake and polished oak, exactly what you'd hope for from an 80s distillation. I found it dries out slightly on the finish which kept it from being a perfect ten for me, but the mid-palate richness is fantastic.

Sophia Laurent — Classic old Speyside character

8/10

Had a dram of this at a tasting event and was impressed. The nose is all Christmas cake and polished oak, exactly what you'd hope for from an 80s distillation. I found it dries out slightly on the finish which kept it from being a perfect ten for me, but the mid-palate richness is fantastic.

Ravi Krishnan — Good but not quite the knockout I expected

7/10

At 34 years old I was expecting to be blown away and honestly it's more of a quiet sophistication than a showstopper. The oak is well-managed and there's a nice nuttiness with some orange peel, but it doesn't have that wow factor I've gotten from some younger cask strength Speysides at half the price. Solid dram, just manage your expectations given what they're asking for it.

Clara Johansson — Good but not quite the knockout I expected

7/10

At 34 years old I was expecting to be blown away and honestly it's more of a quiet sophistication than a showstopper. The oak is well-managed and there's a nice nuttiness with some orange peel, but it doesn't have that wow factor I've gotten from some younger cask strength Speysides at half the price. Solid dram, just manage your expectations given what they're asking for it.

Amira Benali — Good but not quite the knockout I expected

7/10

At 34 years old I was expecting to be blown away and honestly it's more of a quiet sophistication than a showstopper. The oak is well-managed and there's a nice nuttiness with some orange peel, but it doesn't have that wow factor I've gotten from some younger cask strength Speysides at half the price. Solid dram, just manage your expectations given what they're asking for it.