Dalmore 33 Years Old 1978 (Scotia Royale)

This Dalmore was bottled by the bottler Scotia Royale, a 33 year old, distilled in 1978, bottled at 40.5%, one of 210 bottles. Dalmore is a Whyte and Mackay distillery known for its opulent, dried fruit rich style. The Mackenzie clan ran it from 1867, and gave it the twelve pointed Royal Stag, after an ancestor saved King Alexander III from a charging stag in 1263.

The spirit was drawn off stills whose cooling jackets build a rich, oily spirit, building the luscious Dalmore style. It was matured in refill ex-Bourbon oak, vanilla and a soft orange behind the rich spirit. Ethereal and old, decades draw the malt to a rich, waxy depth of sotolon, old oak and dried fruit. The slow loss of the angel's share concentrates the rich, sherried core over the years. The distillery stands on the firth near Alness, in the Northern Highlands. Water comes from the River Averon, drawn from Loch Morie in the hills above.

Bottled at 40.5%, it is rounded. Baked fruit, coffee and a dark sweetness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. The texture is thick and oily, the fruit lifted by a rich sherry. The close is long, fruit over a rich sherry. This is Dalmore, rich with orange and dark chocolate.