Glen Mhor is closely related to the Glen Albyn distillery. It was founded by John Birnie, a former distillery manager of Glen Albyn who managed to take over his old employer in 1920. Both were sold to DCL in 1972 (now Diageo) and closed in 1983. There are a couple of official Rare Malts releases – independent bottlings are increasingly rare.

Glen Mhor 27yo 1982 (55%, Signatory Vintage 2010, cask #1327, 235 btl.)

Nose: grassy / flinty, with an alcohol kick and some minor fruity / honey notes. Faint hints of coconut and leather. A bit of lemon zest and menthol. A wee touch of soot. Interesting because it’s quite rough and delicately floral at the same time. Old-style. Mouth: sweet and punchy attack. Quickly turns to grassy and flinty flavours again, with a bitter tang and lemon zest. Then showing a few floral notes, liquorice and clove. Finish: long and dry with herbs, lemon and green tea.

An old-fashioned Speysider. A bit of a challenge as it goes in different directions and keeps you wondering about its true character. Around € 135.

Score: 83/100