I decided to put a little work in tonight on the scotch tour: anCnoc Flaughter, Glenkinchie 12 and this Aultmore 18 year old. This one was supplied by my friend Paul for our scotch whisky tag team. Aultmore was once owned by the same gentleman that owns the Benrinnes distillery, but it’s now owned by Dewars & Sons. The strange pronunciation of Aultmore (an-tAllt-mor) is Gaelic for “strong burn”, which is appropriate for this whisky. It’s brutish, harsh and very bourbon-like. This one comes in at a robust 46% ABV and is a sparkling gold in the Glencairn. The initial nosing was almost all cereals, honey and lightly charred oak. The palate stayed along the lines of most American bourbons, too: Vanilla, apples and honey. There was also a light, biscuit flavor there before the finish rolled in and just took over. The finish is where this one fails: it’s incredibly bitter and harsh. It’s mind-blowingly difficult to grasp how this one didn’t mature more gracefully in those 18 long years. I’d like to place blame on cask quality, but then after reading a bit into Aultmore’s history and current purpose (experimental distillery for Dewars, I believe)- I came to the realization that maybe this is what they were aiming for. As it is, it’s hard to recommend this as a single malt. Perhaps it is suited more for blends, although I’m not sure what good characteristics it adds to blended whisky because I don’t even want to think of what this stuff tastes like at cask strength. Thanks to Paul for the sample and for eating the high cost on this one (above $100). I guess we should keep on moving....2.5 stars. Cheers, fellas.