Dalmore Valour

Valour is a travel retail exclusive from Dalmore. I bought this bottle after passing on it several times while shopping at my favorite duty free shop. I had heard good things about it and figured what the hell, I’ll give it a try. $80 later I walked out with the 1L bottle that came in a deep purple box. Let’s see what I got myself into. On the box it states the following: “Matured in American white oak and Oloroso sherry wood. Finessed in port pipes from the Douro region in Portugal.” I’m not sure what “finessed in port pipes” means, but is sounds like they poured a few gallons into a port cask, sloshed it around a couple times and then poured it back out. Anyways, I digress. Bottled at 40% ABV and is chill filtered and has enough colorant added to make it a dark copper typical of most Dalmores. The nose is as strong as you would expect for 40% ABV. Oak and cardboard with moderate wood spices. Nutmeg, cinnamon and allspice. Chocolate, light toffee, vanilla, maple and light sherry. Possibly some port notes, though it’s hard to differentiate the port from the sherry in this case. Mixed berries, plums, orange oil and faint candied pineapple. Walnuts and almonds. A hint of furniture polish and a very light citrus. Some complexity to it, but everything is subtle and nuanced. Everything except for the oak, that’s always in the foreground. The palate, like the nose, is mainly oak. Dark chocolate and cinnamon, toffee and sherry. Licorice, tangerines/oranges and and dates. Notes of cardboard and sawdust. The oak takes over again with some tannic bitterness. A decent presence for 40%. Medium-light bodied, thin and dry. The finish is medium length, oak, tannins, light sherry and dry. This is one of the bottles I brought with me to DC for Whiskyfest and @LeeEvolved, @Telex and I pretty much were in agreement that this was the weakest offering of the night during our hotel room tasting. I know some people liked this expression and consider it a worthy addition to the Dalmore lineup, but I find it to be another one of Richard Paterson’s over engineered attempts at pleasing everyone. At times the nose shows promise, but then the oak overtakes everything. The palate is more is the same. Valour is further evidence that you need to pay significantly more for a Dalmore with real depth and personality, like the 18 and the Cigar Malt. While this is a good single malt, it is far from great and that is why it gets a 3.5. Cheers