Origin: Scotland
Type: Blended Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 46%ABV
Ageing casks: N/A
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Dram Mor Group
Average price: € 40.00
Official website: dumbartonrock.co.uk
Vote: 83/100
Dràm Mòr has been a bottler on the scene for some years now, and over time has diversified its bottlings, adding rum, cognac and armagnac to single cask whisky.
It was a few months ago that this blended whisky was released, dedicated to cocktails but also as a light and economical dram but choosing the route of only single malts in its recipe, which is not exactly common in this price range.
The name pays homage to the volcanic relief of the same name near the town of Dumbarton (home of the bottler), on which stands the oldest fortress in Great Britain, a town that also hosted a distillery, Inverleven, in operation between 1938 and 1991 and now demolished.
Nothing is known about composition and ageing, only that the blended was made by Ian Macleod Distillers on their behalf, so some idea of the distilleries used can be had.
Many thanks to the very kind Viktorija and Kenny Macdonald for the bottle.
Tasting notes
In the game of intuitions on the types of ageing, the ex-sherry casks certainly come first on the nose, with a waft of red fruits (currants, cranberries) giving an acidic boost that soon fades in favour of softer notes, bringing out malt, caramel, baked apple and a hint of Jaffa cakes. Rising spices (cinnamon, paprika) and a touch of wood complete the picture. Fragrant.
On the palate, the spices become more lively, introducing pepper and ginger, and the thread of sherried impressions is picked up with a hint of tannins to dry the mouth. Red fruits as on the nose but more pronounced, generally more fruity with grapes, pears, apples and more orange marmalade, with intrusions of chocolate, cereals, roasted coffee and toasted wood. A vegetal vein makes its way along the length.
Medium length finish, somewhat spicy and lively for its fruitiness, fruity, dry and slightly roasted.
The casks are probably a mix of ex-bourbon and ex-sherry, with predominance of the latter especially on the palate, resulting in a blended with some personality maybe more interesting on the nose, but still offering a non-dull dram especially when compared to others in the same price range.