Last and at the top of new Aultmore lineup is the Aultmore 25 Year Old. Although it’s at the top it is only temporary as there are plans for 31yo and 35yo expressions in the future.

But at the moment the 25yo is the crown jewel of the new Aultmore lineup so let’s check and see how good is it.

Aultmore 25 Year Old (46%, £296)

Nose: Gentle and flowery honey, at first it’s herbal but soon leans toward flowery. There are vanilla and mild sweet cream, musk & layer of drying heather fields at autumn giving it some earthy side, a touch of dried old leather.It’s not sweet as the 21 yo as the earthy side tone it down. Continue reading →

Continuing with the new Aultmore lineup and the next one up the ledger is the 21 Year old which is exclusive to Travel Retail (for one year). I’ve noticed there’s a serious gap here from 12 to 21 and it’s far cry from the Craigellachie line that boasts 13 and 17 year old expressions before going to Travel Retail exclusive of 19 year old. Why is that? I have no idea, but it could be attributed to lack of quality casks of this age range, spirit profile didn’t fit the plans or they simply plan on releasing a mid range one in the future.

Anyway, back to the liquid in the spotlight. It’s Travel Retail exclusive, you can find it in different airports. For example I was told by a friend it’s on the shelves in EDI shop for about £125. Yeah, pricey, but maybe it does warrant the price tag?

Aultmore 21 Year Old (46%, ~125)

Nose: Deep and dark floral & honey smell with underground river of spice. further sniffs reveals red apples, large dash of toffee and fudge, and the sweetness slowly turns herbal. Got to say it’s not very complex but it’s lovely!  Continue reading →

Aultmore is the 2nd new distillery released under the Last Great Malts lineup from Bacardi. After Craigellachie, here comes another, almost anonymous, Speyside distillery with totally new lineup ranging from 12yo to 25yo.

AULTMORE has been producing malt whisky since 1897, yet little is known about this obscure distillery. Often cloaked in thick fog and exuding an air of mystery, the sparsely populated land surrounding its site has always felt somewhat isolated. The distillery sits in the sweeping hills of Moray, just north of the town of Keith on the rolling road to Buckie.

 It was built by Alexander Edward, close to curious terrain called the Foggie Moss. This enigmatic area, well known for illicit distillation in days gone by, is home to Aultmore’s water source. Damp, atmospheric conditions prevail here and the water, filtered through the gorse and heather that abounds, is crucial to the whisky’s light, clear character.

I tasted a few Aultmores, mostly from The Scotch Malt Whisky Society and loved them, but most of their production used to go for blends as it provides a light, grassy and sweet speyside profile which blenders seems to like, so let’s see how the OB are performing and we’ll start with the entry level one, the Aultmore 12 Year old.

Aultmore 12 Year Old (46%, £41.95 / €40.85)

Nose: Light, fresh, sweet honey from wild flowers, grassy, some almonds milk, delicate and fresh. A real nice nose. Continue reading →