Welcome to December with sherried Dailuaine
Welcome to December! The month of togetherness, creeping close to the fire, snow outside and a glass of whisky in your hand inside. We take our single malt with a bit more spice in these times, while we countdown to Christmas. So, to kick off this month of joy, we poured one of the more anticipated single malts of 2025: the Dailuaine 21 years old in the Special Releases of this year. When rumours seeped through earlier that there would be a full-blown sherry matured expression of this beloved Speysider, I was looking forward to tasting it. Being the oldest whisky in this years’ release did not bode well for my wallet. Indeed, I had to pass on a bottle. But Santa came early and a sample still dropped in my lap. Thanks, secret Santa, we are going to taste this dark coloured beauty right away! The Dailuaine distillery is known for churning out a characterful single malt, that stands up well to sherry maturation. The popular Flora & Fauna release has perhaps lost some of the sherry-forward character, but we remember older versions that were not for the faint of heart. Let’s see if this new Dailuaine 21 years old reminds me of old times.
Dailuaine 21 years old, Special Releases 2025, bottled at 54,4 % abv
First things first: Named “Marbled Treasure”, this Dailuaine received a life-long maturation in Spanish ex-Sherry casks. A terribly efficient description, right?
Upon Sipping: Deep, dark golden colour. So promising. Oh yes, this certainly smells like a classic sherried whisky, and even more so: a classic sherried Dailuaine! Pronounced cherries, lots of wet cask wood, dunnage warehouse exclusively filled with casks from Spain. Underneath these powerful layers we sure find some true Dailuaine character, best described with copper coins and pumpernickel bread, those loafs you get in a steakhouse to trigger the food muscles. Some meaty character is not to be denied in this Dailuaine 21 years old either. We are truly in that steakhouse, a Spanish one, with Iberico ham to please us. The taste is surprisingly sweet upon arrival, with lots of red fruit and sun-dried raisins, before the spices make for a hot continuation of the pleasure. Some oiliness leaves a mark, like a good brew of coffee from Africa. Thus far, I am very impressed. It does have strong ties with the original Flora & Fauna version from this distillery. The hints of copper on the finish has all the elements of classic English tea with a dash of milk and sugar. How very novel. And nothing but clean character, no sulphur, and the leather on this is haute couture, not something SHEIN shabby.
With water, more red fruit burst loose, with strawberry jam and raisins more pronounced now. On the tongue, the leather has turned a tad dry now, making for a much rougher, dare I say masculine drinking experience. Nothing gender based, just a very strong dram in the glass here. I tasted this Dailuaine right after a 21 years old Glendronach, and I am glad I did, because this one would have blown it away if roles were reversed.
Word to the Wise: Sheer brilliance, I can’t say anything else. This is incredibly tight and focused Dailuaine at a very decent age. The sherry is perfectly integrated with the whisky. Now this warrants the name “Special Release”. I am contemplating buying a bottle of this delight, but will probably wait to the 50 % discount in a year or two.
Score: 91 points.