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T he Dalmore, located in Alness, Scotland, 20 miles north of Inverness, has emerged as one of the most iconic Scotch distilleries, and it almost didn’t happen on more than one occasion. Throughout its history The Dalmore – or just Dalmore, to many collectors – has pivoted many times to survive and distill another day. This includes multiple takeovers, two shutdowns to assist with wartime efforts and shifts in distilling philosophy. The 12-point stag adorning all The Dalmore’s releases is among the most recognizable logos in the spirits industry and has been associated with the distillery since its first business takeover in 1867.
The Dalmore’s inception, in 1839, can be traced to the fall of the East India Company’s infamous trade monopoly. Alexander Matheson, founder of The Dalmore, made his fortune by founding Jardine, Matheson & Co. in 1832, becoming among the first to import tea from India after the monopoly ended. The company still exists today as the Hong Kong-based Jardine Matheson Holdings.
Twenty-eight years later, in 1867, Matheson sold The Dalmore’s leasing rights to brothers from Clan Mackenzie, who almost immediately made the decision the emblazon their family crest on all new bottles. The Mackenzie brothers are credited as innovators –despite their exceptionally remote location in the Northern Highlands, they leveraged direct access to the sea to export their whisky to Australia and New Zealand. The Dalmore is thought to be the first ever exported malt whisky brand, having first done so in 1870.
The early and middle part of the 20th century proved tumultuous for The Dalmore, as they were twice shutdown for World War I and World War II. From 1917 to 1920 the distillery was known as Naval Base 17 and was operated by the US Navy to manufacture mines for the war effort. During World War II, the distillery grounds were again used by the Royal Air Force as a headquarters. The war years wreaked havoc on the distillery property, as it suffered multiple explosions and fires that required extensive repair. Fifteen years after the end of the Second World War, in 1960, and following nearly a century of family ownership, The Dalmore merged with Whyte & Mackay, a whisky producer that used large quantities of The Dalmore’s expressions in its blends.
Whyte & Mackay itself has been acquired more times than most whisky companies, yet the blending company remains a high-performing subsidiary. Their portfolio consists of four malt whisky distilleries – Old Fettercairn, Tamnavulin, Jura and Dalmore – all of which stake their respective claim on a single-malt spectrum produced at the grain distillery near Invergordon. From their merger in 1960 until 2002 Whyte & Mackay restricted The Dalmore to a single 12-year expression, at which point they pivoted from using their distillate mostly for blends to launching new luxury lines of single-malt whisky that embody how special The Dalmore is.
Best known for their Principal Collection, The Dalmore has eight expressions in their regular release series, highlighted by The Dalmore 21 Year, of which only several thousand bottles are released annually. A highly delectable dram, The Dalmore 21 is finished in 30-year-old Matusalem Oloroso sherry casks after initially maturing in American ex-Bourbon barrels. The sherry casks are hand-selected from the world-renowned González Byass bodega, creating an extraordinary whisky full of character.
The Dalmore Constellation Collection – initially a series of 21 different vintages between 1964 and 1992 – was released in 2012, with Sotheby’s Hong Kong auctioning the entire 21-bottle set in July 2022 for HK$4.4 million ($560,000). The Dalmore also received a nice marketing boost in the 2014 film Kingsman: The Secret Service, which references the 1962 vintage as the world’s most revered single malt. At one point, the 1962 Dalmore held the record for the most expensive bottle of whisky ever at £125,000. Only 12 bottles of 1962 were released, all of which were named and released one at a time over the course of a decade from 2002 to 2011. Dalmore truly went from only basic expressions to ultra-premium nearly overnight.
Additionally, The Dalmore Decades Collection and The Dalmore Luminary Series are among the most highly coveted whiskies ever made. The Decades Collection is a series of releases exemplifying how the distillery evolved over the course of six decades, while the Luminary Series is a unique partnership with V&A Dundee, Scotland’s design museum. The latter series sees The Dalmore partnering with architecture firms to create display cases that capture the allure and mystique of the whisky inside. Luminary No. 1, from 2022, was co-conceived by globally acclaimed architect Kengo Kuma, designer of V&A Dundee, his protégé Maurizio Mucciola, Dalmore master distiller Richard Paterson and master whiskymaker Gregg Glass. Recently, Luminary No. 2, from 2024, was designed by Melodie Leung, associate director of internationally renowned design studio Zaha Hadid Architects. Melodie’s design is inspired by the stills on Dalmore’s property and the distinctive fluidity that characterizes Zaha Hadid’s architectural masterpieces.
The Dalmore commands some of the best results any spirit has ever garnered at auction. In November 2022 Sotheby’s auctioned Luminary No. 1 for £118,000 and Luminary No. 2 for £93,000 in May 2024. The six-bottle Decades Collection was auctioned by Sotheby’s in October 2021 for $1.1 million. Other highlights include The Dalmore 50 Year Old Crystal Decanter for £30,000 in May 2024, The Dalmore Aurora 45 Year for $17,500 in June 2023, and an entire barrel of The Dalmore aging in a former Oloroso cask for £26,000 in October 2019. The distillery is considered to have one of the best visitor experiences in the industry, particular following its major 2024 expansion.
The Dalmore has a unique history that defies the odds of survival, and the property on which it sits is considered hallowed ground in the Scotch world. Since beginning to focus on the ultra-premium whisky market in 2002, The Dalmore has released unique limited offerings at a rate most other distilleries could only dream of. Their initial business model of withholding most whisky stocks for blending helped The Dalmore have the necessary inventory for premium releases once the time came to think big and expand the brand.
The Dalmore team is led by master distiller Richard Patterson, Officer of the Order of the British Empire and master whiskymaker Gregg Glass, Global Icons of Whisky Master Distiller of the Year 2023.
As a global leader in bringing The Dalmore to auction, Sotheby’s trusted team is on hand to support you on your collecting journey. Having sold many of the most expensive Dalmore examples to come to market, Sotheby’s is ideally placed to advise on collecting Dalmore scotch whisky.
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