Highland Single Malt Whisky
Circa £30 70cl
Launched in late 2008 to replace the previous 12 year old, this single malt from the Dalmore distillery is a toasty, coffee-rich dram with beautifully spice notes and a thick mouthfeel. Very rich for a 12 year old.
The Dalmore’s unique still house is home to four unique idiosyncratic ‘flat top’ wash stills and four ‘cold water jacket’ spirit stills, each of which varies in shape and size. This unusual arrangement of stills delivers a different run, fill and batch and as such the Dalmore’s stillmen play a vital role in ensuring the base spirit is both robust and complex.
The ‘house’ style of The Dalmore – orange marmalade, coffee, chocolate, sweet vanilla and spice - is brought about by its maturation in hand selected first fill bourbon barrels from Kentucky and aged sherry casks. All casks are hand selected by the Master Distiller and as The Dalmore is the only distillery permitted to source Matusalem sherry from Gonzalez Byass, its style truly inimitable.
After its maturation in American bourbon and Spanish sherry casks, the whisky is brought together by The Dalmore’s third generation Master Distiller, Richard Paterson, and left to harmonise in upstanding sherry butts.
Matured for 12 years and judicious selection and the precise balance of American white oak and Oloroso sherry wood, delivers a most vibrant expression – robust yet elegant, with an aftertaste of brilliant complexity.
So what did I think
I tasted this immediately after the Cigar Malt Reserve and was immediately impressed with the smooth luxuriousness of this whisky. Deep, golden mahogany in colour and with orange marmalade and aromatic spices roasting coffee beans and an oily buttery nuttiness on the nose. Rich and luxurious on the palate with sharp citrus balanced by the sweet vanilla. The Dalmore house style orange marmalade and milk chocolate was evident and I really enjoyed this, even preferred it to the Cigar Malt Reserve. Perhaps it had prepared me for the Dalmore house style? I know I will have to go back for more of this, and certainly will be wanting to try the15 year old.
(Thanks to Whyte&Mackay for supplying the photograph as I was not organised enough to take my own photos)
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| The stunning looking Dalmore 12 Year Old |
The Dalmore’s unique still house is home to four unique idiosyncratic ‘flat top’ wash stills and four ‘cold water jacket’ spirit stills, each of which varies in shape and size. This unusual arrangement of stills delivers a different run, fill and batch and as such the Dalmore’s stillmen play a vital role in ensuring the base spirit is both robust and complex.
The ‘house’ style of The Dalmore – orange marmalade, coffee, chocolate, sweet vanilla and spice - is brought about by its maturation in hand selected first fill bourbon barrels from Kentucky and aged sherry casks. All casks are hand selected by the Master Distiller and as The Dalmore is the only distillery permitted to source Matusalem sherry from Gonzalez Byass, its style truly inimitable.
After its maturation in American bourbon and Spanish sherry casks, the whisky is brought together by The Dalmore’s third generation Master Distiller, Richard Paterson, and left to harmonise in upstanding sherry butts.
Matured for 12 years and judicious selection and the precise balance of American white oak and Oloroso sherry wood, delivers a most vibrant expression – robust yet elegant, with an aftertaste of brilliant complexity.
So what did I think
I tasted this immediately after the Cigar Malt Reserve and was immediately impressed with the smooth luxuriousness of this whisky. Deep, golden mahogany in colour and with orange marmalade and aromatic spices roasting coffee beans and an oily buttery nuttiness on the nose. Rich and luxurious on the palate with sharp citrus balanced by the sweet vanilla. The Dalmore house style orange marmalade and milk chocolate was evident and I really enjoyed this, even preferred it to the Cigar Malt Reserve. Perhaps it had prepared me for the Dalmore house style? I know I will have to go back for more of this, and certainly will be wanting to try the15 year old.
(Thanks to Whyte&Mackay for supplying the photograph as I was not organised enough to take my own photos)
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