Aultmore 25 Year Old Foggie Moss Batch #42 Limited Edition Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (2024) 70cl

Aultmore is a distillery that is owned by Bacardi. It was first founded in 1896, changed hands a few times but eventually joined the Bacardi Malts portfolio in 1998.

For a long time the distillery was only used to create malt for blends, and it is even said that the malt created here is so good that Bacardi, who own Dewar’s, refused any deal that did not include it when they were buying the other distilleries historically owned by Dewar’s in 1998.

In 2014 Aultmore was taken to market as a brand in its own right alongside other brands such as Craigellachie, The Devron, Aberfeldy and Royal Brackla.

This saw the release of a new core range of expressions from each distillery, with Aultmore releasing a 12 Year Old, 25 Year Old, a 30 Year Old and finally a 21 Year Old that is only available from travel retail.

These malts were released to critical acclaim, and the 25 is a particularly fine example of the stunning drams that are created at Aultmore.

It has won two gold medals, one for in the Speyside Single Malt 21 Years and Over category at the 2016 World Whiskies Awards and one in the Highlands & Islands 19-30yo category at the 2015 Scotch Whisky Masters.

Intensity is what helps to define Aultmore. Its wort is clear, the fermentations long, but its stills are relatively small with downward lyne arms.

Running the stills slow helps to maximise reflux, but the shape also allows some heavier elements to come across. In character, therefore, Aultmore shares some of the same characters as Linkwood – fragrant on the nose, substantial on the tongue

When drinking locally, you wouldn’t ever ask for an Aultmore, but for ‘a dram of the Buckie road’. Located in splendid isolation on the route which runs from that fishing port to Keith, it has – until very recently – been a rare bird as a single malt. Built by the enterprising Alexander Edward [see Craigellachie] in 1896 it was always going to be pressed into service for blends.

In 1923 it became part of the John Dewar & Sons estate and has remained so ever since. In fact, so highly prized is it as a blending malt that it is said that when Bacardi was in the process of buying Dewar’s from Diageo, it was willing to walk away from the deal if Aultmore wasn’t included.