Aultmore was founded in 1897 by Alexander Edward who also owned Benrinnes and Oban. It is now part of the Bacardi empire and most of the output is used for the Dewar’s blends. The Aultmore 12 years old is currently the only official bottling.

Bristol Brandy was an independent bottler with a few legendary releases at the beginning of the 1990’s. This Aultmore 1976 is one of them.

Aultmore 15 yo 1976 (43%, OB 1992 for Bristol Brandy Company Ltd)

Nose: hmm great sherry nose. Very much on tobacco and cigar boxes. Milk chocolate and coffee. Hints of oak polish and leather. A bit of library dust. Dried fruits of course, mostly apricots and figs. Elegant and not too overpowering, which is an advantage but also a disadvantage because it’s not very punchy. Mouth: sourish attack, soon overtaken by an avalanche of spices and wood resin. Very woody and rather tannic. Bitter oranges. Pine trees. Again not very big nor very complex. The flavours struggle to fight the wood. Finish: spicy (cloves, pepper) with hints of chocolate.

Lovely sherry influence on the nose, but the woody palate more or less spoils the overall experience. I expected more of this.

Score: 83/100