Dalmore distillery

Dalmore is a Highland single malt whisky, which is characterized by the use of sherry casks in the maturation. Most Dalmore whiskies show mild orange and chocolate aromas. The Dalmore 12 years is a great example of Dalmore’s house style.

Dalmore Whisky

Dalmore is a typical Highland Whisky from its basic character, although single malts from Dalmore are usually quite easy but complex. The Dalmore Distillery is located far north of Scotland, quite remote from the northern shore of the Cromarty Firth. About one hour by car from the ‘Highland Capital’ Inverness, it is a popular destination.

The distillery has been in place since 1839. Dalmore Single Malts are characterized above all by the dark fruity aromas. These are created by the generous use of Sherry casks in the maturation of the Highland Whisky. The name Dalmore translated means ‘big meadowland’.

House style

How does Dalmore Single Malt taste? Dalmore is a big, voluminous whisky. Their single malts are consistently very fruity and offer great flavors of orange marmalade, chocolate, malt and not least sherry. The malt for Dalmore is not smoked over peat and is therefore not smoky. However, flavors of tobacco and delicate smoke are often created by the ripening in the European oak barrels.

Production

How is Dalmore Single Malt produced?In Dalmore, it is distilled in eight pot stills. There are four wash stills, two with 16,500 litres each and two with 8,250 litres capacity each. To this end, Dalmore distills on four fine spirit still, two with 11,364 litres each and two with 7,340 litres of capacity each. The form of the Wash Stills is unusual. These have a conically shaped head, which leads to the special character of the Dalmore.

That’s not the only curiosity in Dalmore’s Still House, it is quite uncommon in Scotland that the pot stills have different sizes. Dalmores stills differ greatly in size from one another, which theoretically leads to two very different distillates. Dalmore is given a constant character only by the skilful distilling and mixing by the distillers before being bottled.

The Spirit Stills also have a special feature. Water flows down on the outer walls of their necks during the distillation. This should cool from the outside and support the reflux in the interior of the stills. As a result of the reflux, heavy components of the alcohol vapor fall back and are distilled again. As a result, the fire will be milder. Aside from Dalmore, only its sister distillery Fettercairn in the eastern Highlands is using such an unusual method.

The water for Dalmore comes from the River Alness, the malt is bought externally. Dalmore uses a variety of high-quality oak barrels for the barrel maturation. Master Blender and Whisky icon Richard Patterson regularly selects special sherry, port and wine barrels for maturation.

Recommendations

To get to know the house style of the distillery, the Dalmore 12 years of age is recommended. The light Dalmore carries a combination of fine orange and vanilla tones. These are underlined by the Dalmore-typical sherry aromas of spices and tobacco notes. A great dessert whisky! Those with an interest in port casks whould explore Dalmore’s Dalmore Valour or Dalmore Port Wood Reserve.

History

The Dalmore distillery began its history in 1839 as a classic farmhouse distillery. For more than 100 years, Dalmore remained in the possession of the founding Mackenzie family. According to a legend, in 1263 Clan Chief Colin of Kintail rescued King Alexander III from being gored by a stag. As a thank you to the king, the Clan Mackenzie was allowed to carry on his coat of arms from now on to the Twelfth deer. The family coat of arms of the Mackenzies proudly decorates the bottles of the Dalmore Single Malts since age. The memorable bottle shape and the deer head have certainly contributed to the recognition value and success of the brand.

Thanks to the friendly connections of the Mackenzies to James Whyte and Charles Mackay, the Dalmore was a part of their famous blend early on. In 1960, Dalmore went so far as to merge with Whyte and Mackay to Whyte & Mackay Ltd., which was in the possession of the distillery until 2007. In 2007, the acquisition was carried out by United Spirits Limited, a subsidiary of The UB Group from India. Dalmore now belongs to the same owner as Isle of Jura, Fettercairn and Tamnavulin.

Dalmore factsheet

Can I tour Dalmore?

Yes Dalmore distillery is tourable. On Trip Advisor the distillery has been rated as excellent by 93 of 179 tours to date. This gives Dalmore an overall rating of 4.0