Aultmore

When drinking locally, you wouldn’t ask for an Aultmore, but for ‘a dram of the Buckie road.’ Located in isolation on the route from Buckie to Keith, Aultmore was seldom available as a single malt until recently. Built in 1896 by Alexander Edward, it was primarily used for blends. In 1923, it joined the John Dewar & Sons estate and remained highly valued for blending, to the extent that Bacardi insisted on including Aultmore in its acquisition of Dewar’s from Diageo. Despite a major refurbishment in the 1970s, Aultmore appeared to be just a functional plant. However, the recent official releases of its single malts reveal the quality that blenders have long cherished.