Dalmore Cromartie Review


“Highland Blues”

Whisky Review # 617

Country: Scotland
Region: Northern Highlands
Brand: Dalmore Cromartie (1996) - Bottling Series: Lands of Clan MacKenzie
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: 15 Years
Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 45%
Maturation: Bourbon and Sherry Casks 
Chill Filtration: Yes
Price Range: US$ 150-200 (June 2017)
Buying Advice: 😡 Negative. Way too expensive. Stick with the 15! 

Colour: Amber/Copper (Artificially Coloured)

Nose: Sweet and a bit Heavy. It reminds me of a Floral Perfume. The Sherry cask influence is quite clear. I find Dried Fruits like Raisins, Apricots, Sultanas and Figs. Unfortunately I detect a fair amount of Sulphur as well together with a few slightly Sour Red Wine notes. They tend to diminish over time in the glass. The Alcohol is quite present as well I'm afraid. Other familiar Aromas include Malted Barley, Buttered Toast, Brown Sugar, Treacle, Toffee, Caramel, Polished Leather, Grass, Orange, Grapefruit, Canned Pineapple and hints of Tobacco, Chocolate, Wet Stones, Oak, Espresso, Ginger and Menthol. It's not bad but I was expecting much more at this price level.

Visit Dalmore May 2017

Palate: Sweet and Heavy, almost a bit tired. I find the Dried Fruit from the Nose together with some Malt, Toffee, Caramel, Treacle, Black Currant Jam, Vanilla, Red Wine, Orange, Grapefruit, Chocolate, Oak, Tea, Pepper, Nutmeg, Ginger, Cinnamon, Cloves, Aniseed, Menthol, Dark Honey, Polished Leather, Espresso, Licorice and the faintest hint of Smoke. The Alcohol is still there!      

Finish: Middle-Long. Sweet at first but quite Dry, Woody and Mineral towards the end. A few slightly Sour and Bitter notes pop up as well. I find Malted Barley, Caramel, Toffee, Vanilla, Treacle, Dark Chocolate, Orange, Grapefruit, Red Wine, light Pepper, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Licorice, Aniseed, Menthol, Dried Herbs, Tobacco and a sprinkle of Salt. The Alcohol remains present until the end.

Visit Dalmore May 2017

Drinking Advice:

I added a little Water and on the Nose the Floral - and Orange notes become even clearer. Almost like Orange-Oil. The Alcohol withdraws. Palate and Finish do not significantly change although the Orange becomes almost a bit too dominant. Still, the Cromartie gladly accepts a little Water.  

Rating: 84    

Nose: 21 - Taste: 21 - Finish: 21 - Overall: 21


General Remarks:

🏣   The Distillery and Today's Whisky

The Dalmore Distillery was founded in 1839 by Alexander Matheson. It is located in Alness on the banks of the Cromarty Firth. It is operated by Whyte & Mackay Ltd, owned by Emperador Inc. since 2014. The Dalmore Cromartie was launched in 2012 and is the third in a series of 3 Limited Editions crafted by Master Distiller Richard Paterson to honour the Clan MacKenzie, the owners of the Dalmore Distillery for over a century. The Dalmore McKenzie was the first, released in 2010, followed by Castle Leod in 2011. Together they seek to celebrate the ancient lands of Cromartie, the heartland of the McKenzie clan and home to Castle Leod, the clan's historic seat where they still reside today. A substantial contribution from the sales of these three Expressions will be used to maintain the clan's estates in Cromartie. Only 7500 bottles of the Cromartie went to the market.

🍷  The Spirit

Dalmore is equipped with four pairs of Stills of various size and form with high Reflux characteristics. Together these stills produce a slightly heavy and more complex Whisky. The Water is sourced from the river Alness.

🌲 The Wood

The Cromartie initially rested in American White Oak Bourbon casks before being further matured for a couple of years in Oloroso casks from Sherry Producer Gonzales Byass in Jerez de la Frontera. Richard Paterson decides when the casks are ready for bottling. The Sulphur and Sour Red Wine notes suggest that at least a number of indifferent Sherry casks went in the mix.

Drinking Experience Neat: Good

Conclusion: You would expect that extra good casks would be used for these expensive Limited Editions but somehow I get the feeling that's not the case here. The Alcohol, the Sulphur and the Sour notes would suggest that some less excellent casks were used as well. The standard 15 Years is in fact better in my opinion and it's a lot cheaper. It's perhaps a tad less complex but it doesn't show these off-notes and it's simply a more pleasant dram. Do we need to be careful with all Single Malts that bear fancy names these days? It almost looks like it. The Dalmore Cromartie is not a bad Single Malt but it's way too expensive for what it offers. No way I would spend more than 50 US Dollars for this!

Jan van den Ende                                                                      June 12, 2017

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