
Dalmore 15 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Dalmore · Dalmore Distillery
Dalmore's 15-year-old demonstrates the distillery's signature approach to sherry cask management. The three-stage maturation — bourbon barrels, then Matusalem oloroso sherry casks, followed by Apostoles sherry casks — creates a layered, dessert-like whisky that somehow avoids heaviness. It rewards slow sipping.
Nose
Orange marmalade and dark chocolate open the nose with immediate richness. Dried fruit — dates and figs — mingle with a waxy quality and hints of hazelnut and old leather-bound books.
Palate
Silky and full, with caramel-coated dried fruit giving way to clove spice and cocoa on the mid-palate. The sherry cask influence is prominent but well-integrated, adding layers of dried stone fruit and gentle oak.
Finish
Medium-long, with lingering orange peel, malt sweetness, and a dusting of cocoa that fades gracefully.
- Region
- Highland
- Cask Type
- Ex-bourbon, Matusalem oloroso sherry, Apostoles oloroso sherry
- Peat Level (PPM)
- 0
- Distillation
- Copper pot stills with unusually flat-topped spirit stills, creating a rich and heavy new make
- Maturation
- Bourbon barrels for initial maturation, finished in Matusalem oloroso sherry butts and Apostoles oloroso sherry casks
- Chill-Filtered
- Yes
Cocktail Suggestion
Highland Boulevardier — 1.5 oz Dalmore 15 · 1 oz Cocchi Vermouth di Torino · 0.75 oz Campari · Stir with ice, strain into a coupe, garnish with an orange twist.
Food Pairing
The concentrated orange and cocoa in the whisky echo a bittersweet dark chocolate tart topped with candied orange segments and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt.
Produced on the shores of the Cromarty Firth in the Scottish Highlands, Dalmore has been shaped since 1839 by some of whisky's most complex cask programs, overseen for decades by master blender Richard Paterson.
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