The Dalmore, Distillery Select 2026
The Dalmore launched Distillery Select in 2024 to show a different side of its single malt, and the 2026 edition is the first since the distillery reopened. A 2012 vintage matured primarily in ex-bourbon casks, it takes a 21-month finish in Semisecco Marsala casks from Sicily. Unusually for the distillery, it is non-chill-filtered, natural color, and bottled at 53.7%. Limited to 1,110 bottles, sold at the appointment-only distillery and to members of the Dalmore Guild.
Nose
Orange zest, mandarin, lemon
Palate
Honey pomelo, candied orange, walnuts
Finish
Toasted oak, heather, citrus
The Marsala casks have certainly had an impact on this single malt. The nose is full of citrus and floral notes — orange zest and mandarin at first, tilting later towards lemon and lime — with a nuttiness lingering in the background. The palate largely lives up to it, fresh citrus bursting through in candied orange, honey pomelo and freshly cracked walnuts. That fruitiness clings on to the finish, now balanced by some drying oak, with a note of heather towards the end. This is distinctive from anything in The Dalmore's core range, which is exactly what you want from a one-off limited edition. But in another sense it's predictable, delivering a hit of Marsala wine on top of a bourbon-aged Highland malt.
