Coldorak's whisky blog.
Today, the spotlight is on Dumbarton, a closed grain whisky distillery, through two independent single grain releases. First up is a Dumbarton 1986 Scott’s Selection, followed by a more recent bottling from 2000 by The Caskhound. Both offer a rare glimpse into the lightly explored world of Dumbarton grain whisky, ahead of a deeper dive into the distillery’s history after the break.
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It has been several months since a bottle from Ben Nevis last featured on More Drams, and the absence has certainly been felt. Ben Nevis distillery is famed not only for its historic roots – dating back to 1825 under the watch of the legendary ‘Long John’ MacDonald – but also for the distinctive, full-bodied spirit it produces. As a distillery whose small output and varied cask management have resulted in an array of characterful single malts and striking independent bottlings, Ben Nevis remains perpetually in demand. Now, with the anticipation that only a rummage through the sample drawers can inspire, let’s revisit this Highland stalwart. Five indy bottled Ben Nevis samples, spanning different casks, ages and independent bottlers: Wilson & Morgan, Swell de Spirits, Hidden Spirits, Elixir Distillers and Signatory Vintage.
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Not much has changed since we wrote about the lack of love given by Pernod Ricard and Chivas Brothers to Glenburgie, almost four years ago. Apart a 16-year-old cask strength expression for South Korea last year, it doesn’t seem anything official has been released since 2022. So once again, it’s up to independent bottlers to allow consumers to enjoy some Glenburgie single malt by itself, and not blended and ruined into a bland Chivas blend. To the rescue today come That Boutique-y Whisky Company and Chorlton Whisky, as we review a Glenburgie 16-year-old Boutique-y and a 14-year-old from Chorlton.
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Scapa Distillery has launched a renewed core range featuring 10-, 16-, and 21-year-old single malts, marking its first permanent age-statement collection since 1885. Released in late 2024 under the Signature Range name, the series showcases Scapa’s fruity, unpeated style, with all three whiskies matured in first-fill American oak casks and bottled at 48% ABV or cask strength.
The new core range was accompanied by new packaging said to take inspiration from the calm coastal surroundings of Scapa Flow, using a soft maritime colour palette and redesigned bottle silhouettes. The launch coincides with updates to the distillery’s visitor centre, reflecting Pernod Ricard’s decision to at last revitalise Scapa, and bringing renewed attention to this long-overlooked Orkney distillery.
We’ll review all three of these new expressions, as well as the old 16-year-old, discontinued in 2016.
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Douglas Laing created the Timorous Beastie Cheese Cellar Collection as a trilogy of Highland blended malt whiskies crafted specifically to pair with artisan cheeses. This limited-edition series forms part of the Remarkable Regional Malts range and highlights Highland single malts including Dalmore, Glengoyne, Glen Garioch, and Strathearn. Between 2024 and 2025, the company developed the collection to celebrate the link between whisky and cheese, finishing each expression in a different style of wine cask chosen to complement distinctive cheese types.
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Almost two years ago, I reviewed two Benriach 12-year-old expressions from the distillery’s modern range – the line introduced after the major rebranding of September 2020. That refreshed identity brought a new look and a more contemporary flavour philosophy under its A World of Flavour portfolio.
But what did Benriach taste like before this new era? Perhaps you’ve never asked yourself that question – though I certainly have. To satisfy that curiosity, this review revisits four Benriach bottlings from the 2010s: three official releases, including one peated expression, and one independent bottling. Together they offer a snapshot of how the distillery’s character evolved before its transformation into the Benriach we know today.
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Last Wednesday, two friends and I hosted a second sherried whiskies session at Rennes Whisky Club, this time featuring three bottlings from Signatory Vintage’s 100 proof series: Tormore, Benrinnes, and Ardmore. After the tasting, I realised I had overlooked an Auchroisk from the same range—one I forgot about when I put together my earlier review of three indy Auchroisks. I decided to bring it along, turning the evening into a lineup of four Auchroisk, Tormore, Benrinnes and Ardmore Signatory 100 proof whiskies.
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We return to Orkney with a review of three Independent Secret Orkney bottlings. As a reminder, Orkney only has two whisky distilleries: Highland Park and Scapa. None of these bottlings should be from Scapa, so you can easily guess their origin. By the way, I plan to review Scapa’s new core range soon, so stay tuned for that. We will examine today’s whiskies in ascending order of ABV, starting immediately with a relatively high proof, as the lowest ABV (57.1%!) in this selection is the Signatory 100 Proof bottling.
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Glenlivet has appeared only once on More Drams Less Drama (by itself). The official 12-year-old, bottled at 40% and chill-filtered, earned a forgettable 4/10 rating, whilst a 25-year-old Speyside #4 from That Boutique-y Whisky Company demonstrated that the distillery performs considerably better when not overly diluted. Today’s pair might reinforce that observation with two Glenlivet 2007 bottled by Signatory Vintage, both bottled at cask strength and offering a glimpse of what Glenlivet can achieve when left unmolested at high proof.
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Auchroisk remains one of the most enigmatic names in the whisky world (and not the easiest to pronounce correctly). Its presence outside of blends is almost ghostlike – with not even a website anymore, worse even than when its official website offered barely more than a placeholder, as observed in our last review of an independent Auchroisk bottling back in 2019. Founded in the 1970s mainly to supply malt for J&B blends, this Speyside distillery has long flown under the radar, producing the bulk of its spirit for high-volume blended whiskies rather than shining as a single malt star. The latest official bottling I could find on Whiskybase is the 10-year-old in Diageo’s Flora & Fauna collection, but the latest one goes back to 2022. Fortunately, independently bottled Auchroisk expressions, such as these three Auchroisk from That Boutique-y Whisky Co, Van Wees, and A. D. Rattray, have allowed us to get glimpses into the character of this often-overlooked distillery.
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