Dalmore 50 Years Old W&M Black Decanter (Whyte & Mackay)

Whyte and Mackay bottled this Dalmore, a 50 year old, distilled in 1926. Dalmore sits above the Cromarty Firth, its water jacketed stills building a thick, oily spirit. It is owned by Whyte and Mackay, and its King Alexander III bottling nods to the clan legend.

The spirit was run through the distillery's unusual flat topped and water jacketed stills, for a full, opulent Highland spirit. An ex-Bourbon barrel shaped it, vanilla and citrus beneath the rich malt. Ethereal and old, decades draw the malt to a rich, waxy depth of sotolon, old oak and dried fruit. The thick spirit shows the sherry clearly, dried fruit and orange over a malty depth. The full bodied make rewards a long, sherried maturation in good wood. The distillery stands on the firth near Alness, in the Northern Highlands. Its flat topped wash stills and water jacketed spirit stills build a thick, rich, oily spirit.

The palate is soft and approachable. Baked fruit, coffee and a dark sweetness, with a soft vanilla from the oak. A baked fruit and a warm spice lift it. It finishes rich, malty and warm. This is a sherried Highland single malt of real depth.