Five Malts & an Armagnac | Various ABV

Big Words

The issue of freebies has long and elaborately been discussed on Dramface. Occasionally we get offered samples or even full bottles from producers or bottlers, obviously with the idea that we review them.

Now everyone likes a free dram, and saying otherwise would be a stone-cold lie, but that’s about as far as any potential ‘quid pro quo’ goes. Just because it was a freebie, doesn’t mean it automatically gets a favourable review.

Not just because it’s the ‘ethical’ thing to do, but for a number of other reasons too. Big words incoming…

For starters, giving something a favourable review, or at least a ‘friendlier’ one than what it would actually merit, is triple-fold cheating. Firstly, on the actual whisky at hand and the producer behind it; as singing praise where it isn’t due can only lead to disappointment. Then on ourselves, as reviewers, because it would seriously undermine our credibility and integrity (I did warn you about those big words); and of course, and this is the most important bit - it would be dishonest towards you, our readers.

Dramface is fully independent – we don’t do ads and we don’t accept sponsorship or funding from the industry in any way. The only thing that helps cover our costs, comes from your £3.99/mo. subscriptions. Having our readers fundamentally as ‘our boss’ (the ones that provide funds to keep this operation running), is a healthy way of making sure that ‘fiercely independent’ statement we unobtrusively like to boast about, is much, much more than just a nice catchphrase.

I know we’ve talked about this whole thing in the past before, but given that we’re now well over four years running - and are close to 1600 independent reviews - it doesn’t hurt to occasionally remind ourselves about it. And by doing so, explain to you why we take this seriously.

So whenever a parcel reaches casa Argyle in a big brown envelope, up until now once or twice a year, I pretty much know what’s in it: a sample set, likely containing five or six ‘wee drams’ from Kenny and Viktorija MacDonald, the beating heart of all things Dràm Mòr. They’ve been around for a good six years now. I first met them when they were just starting out while they were at probably one of their first ever whisky festivals as a ‘brand’, and have established themselves as an indie bottler over those years. While whisky is their core focus, they’re not averse to releasing some rum or Armagnac ‘on the side’ as well, as will become clear if you plough through the following six reviews I have in store for you.

Review 1/6

Glen Moray 11 yo, Bourbon cask matured, 1st fill Oloroso hogshead finish, 251 bottles, 56.2% ABV
£79 & still some availability

Score: 6/10

**Very Good Indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*An honest, fruity, classic Speyside*

Nose

Very floral – soapy, like lavender and, to be clear, in a pleasant way. White fruit with melon and peach. A hint of plant-based oil – not exactly linseed oil, but something close. Also, a hint of hand sanitizer (again, not in an unpleasant way). Grainy and a bit dry.

With a bit of water the fruit almost crawls out of the glass, bringing along hitherto somewhat hidden vanilla and honey notes.

Palate

Grainy – bready, a good dose of white pepper. Again, floral and white fruit – grapes this time, but also a hint of lemon sherbet. A dry, clinging, sticky mouthfeel.

With the water a lot of honey and vanilla, just like on the nose.

The Dregs

A young and youthful, crisp and clean Glen Moray. Almost a textbook example of a fruity, light Speyside whisky. Some may say this is a tad (too?) youthful, but I don’t mind that in the slightest as it allows plenty of the spirit character and flavour to shine through.

The one thing I didn’t really pick up on, was the oloroso hoggie. Despite it being a first fill, it didn’t really ‘impact’ things in terms of flavour, but with a light and fruity Speysider, I again don’t really mind.

Score: 6/10

Review 2/6

Balmenach 10 yo, 1st fill Palo Cortado hogshead finish, 255 bottles, 55.7% ABV
£85 & still some availability

Score: 6/10

***Good stuff.***
***TL;DR***
*A meal in a glass*

Nose

Dark vanilla, lemon meringue, white chocolate, and an interesting vegetal element as it has this ‘wet leaves’ vibe going on. Dark honey, and the Palo Cortado cask doing its thing adding a nice touch of nutty notes, fudge and caramel. Quite a lot going on here…

Palate

Full, dry and sweet arrival. Confectionary and spice notes like a cola cube sweetness with a whiff of clove or ginger to it. There’s treacle, sitting alongside tropical, almost overripe fruit notes. What really stands out is its dense texture and clinging mouthfeel.

The Dregs

Quite intense! It’s not like it’s overpowering, but it’s full, rich and dense in a very real sense, to the point where it almost becomes ‘chewy’ – a liquid meal, almost.

Score: 6/10

Review 3/6

Campbeltown 8 yo blended malt, refill Bourbon barrel, 250 bottles, 57.2% ABV
£70-75 & still some availability

Score: 8/10

**Something special.**
***TL;DR***
*Homemade ice cream on a windy beach*

Nose

Barley Sugar! And lots and lots of it. Chocolate, creamy, with vanilla and citrus. The barley sugar develops into a bready-grainy note again and sits wonderfully well against a subtle yet clear sea spray-salinity note. Just a lovely, rich, yet still restrained, well balanced nose. And after adding water, everything becomes even sharper and brighter.

Palate

Ooh! This is good stuff! A lot of the nose transfers straight onto the palate. Again, everything is just wonderfully interwoven here, and the balance is a delight!

It’s somewhat weird how vanilla and sea spray notes can work together so well, but they do. And they do it brilliantly. The added water accentuates a pleasant sweet and sour note (that barley sugar vibe again) which counters the vanilla-coastal combo. It was already very good, but seeing how the finish is almost a tasting note in its own right (it has this earthy element and a deep, dark vanilla echo lingering on), this does impact the scoring and appreciation!

The Dregs

Safe to say ‘secret Campbeltown’ is just code for a lot of Glen Scotia with a few teaspoons of Springbank and/or Glengyle. And it’s wonderful to see Glen Scotia, the once often overlooked ‘wee brother’ in the Campbeltown family, now making quite a name for himself with quality stuff. There’s been quite a few impressive younger whiskies coming from that part of Campbeltown in recent years, both official and indie releases, and this one is no exception. Delicious stuff!

Score: 8/10

Review 4/6

Torabhaig 7 yo, first-fill Bourbon barrel, 228 bottles, 56.7% ABV
£70 & still some availability

Score: 7/10

**Very good indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*You’ve come a long way baby!*

Nose

Light, but deceptively so: orchard fruit, citrus, pear drops and a distinct yet mild peat and smoke. White pepper and underneath subtle vanilla and honey notes are making themselves known.

With a dash of added water an oily element pops up.

Palate

Again, that combo of fruit (a lot of citrus now) and peat and smoke. The peat is quite prominent now with a clear ashy taste, like what you get from embers and cigars.

The mouthfeel is medium full and somewhat drying as it goes into a long, woody and dry, ashy-smoky finish.

The Dregs

Young and youthful but also very ‘honest’ and crisp. The balance between smoke and fruit on the one hand and between spirit and cask on the other is well in check. I tried this recently in a tasting with Kenny and this one was one of the bottles that ended up in the shopping cart afterwards. I feel those first few releases from Torabhaig may have well been borderline too young and underaged, but this 7 going on 8 year old proves just how good they can already be.

Score: 7/10

Review 5/6

Pulteney 18 yo, first-fill Oloroso quarter cask finish, 88 bottles, 49.5% ABV
£160 -170 & still some availability

Score: 7/10

**Very good indeed.**
***TL;DR***
*A ‘big’ Pulteney, in every sense of the word*

Nose

Lush! Buttery and gently salty, going into salted butter territory as a result. Dried fruit with raisins and sultanas, raspberries, cherries and a shy chocolate note. Quite some almonds too, adding a whiff of marzipan even. A gentle ginger - spice note rounds things off just ever so nicely.

Nose

Rich, round arrival. Ginger, dried red fruit and quite hefty, proving there’s still quite a bit of ‘punch’ to this, despite it having dropped just under the 50% ABV barrier. Demerara sugar, toffee and dark chocolate and maybe my tongue plays tricks on me, but I’m getting a hint of woody tannins on this one as well.

The Dregs

This is the older sibling from their 17yo they released in 2025. This one was finished in oloroso quarter casks whereas the ‘younger’ one was finished in a first-fill Maker’s Mark bourbon barrel. Blind, and despite there being some salinity going on, I may not have guessed this to be a Pulteney, but the ‘Highland’ character is quite clear. And what a cracking Highland it is!

Score: 7/10

Review 6/6

Armagnac, 25 yo, Chateau de Bordeneuve (2000-2025), 300 bottles, 48.6% ABV
£85 & still some availability

Score: 8/10

**Something special.**
***TL;DR***
*Wanted: excellent Scotch to be given a run for its money!*

Nose

So fruity and sweet! Not sweet sweet, if that makes sense, but a rich, deep sweetness coming from the distillate and the cask. There are raisins, obviously, but also a lot of nutty notes. Some confectionary with cola cubes and spices, milk chocolate and even a hint of pear syrup. Those 25 years of maturation add a (wonderful, I will say) touch of wood wax and varnish.

Palate

Rich, round, bold arrival. Full of dark fruit notes, (charred) wood, baking spices, toffee, fudge chocolate and coffee. Less nutty than the nose suggested but not less glorious by any means.

The Dregs

The distinctive fruity DNA reveals this is not a whisky. But in terms of character, delivery, profile, texture… rest assured it can put its foot next to any whisky without batting an eye. A powerhouse and a flavour bomb: this is exquisite grape juice and an excellent malternative, for, it needs to be said, roughly half the price if not less of what you’d pay for a similarly aged single malt.

Score: 8/10

The Final Dregs

Over the years, I’ve lost track of how many samples and bottles I’ve tried from Dràm Mòr. Fair to say, it’s dozens. Some were absolutely stellar, a lot of them were very good, some more than just enjoyable. I’ve not had one dud. Ever. Is what I’m trying to say.

The lowest I’ve ever rated one of their whiskies, was a 5/10, which happened once (I remember it well because I too was a bit surprised), and they bagged a lot of 7/10’s and upwards. They will never be the cheapest option out there – there’s simply no way for them to do what Signatory is now doing with their 100º Proof series, as an example. And whether they will ever be ‘the best’ option out there is a meaningless debate as that is simply too subjective a discussion.

But what they do offer, quite niche as it may be, is to tap into our geekery, providing us with quite often very good to excellent whiskies, and almost always with ‘interesting’ whiskies.

A personal bonus in all of this, to at least me and I think quite a few others too, is that there are faces, real people, behind the brand. It helps to build and strengthen our community when there are people like the MacDonalds, Mark and Kate Watt, Oliver Chilton, Angus MacRaild, Julie Hamilton, Jenny Karlsson, Michael Henry and countless others as an active part of it, as these are the folk that help meaningfully bridge the gap between producer and consumer.

They are living proof that, despite this being a multi-billion-pound business, it’s not a case of ‘they’ and ‘us’. It’s a case of ‘we, the community’, of people who are just as passionate about the water of life as we are, and who’re doing everything they can to make it as good as it can be. For all of us to enjoy and ramble on about.

I think that’s enough ‘big words’ for one review.

(bottle pics © Dràm Mòr)

Tried this? Share your thoughts in the comments below. EA

Dramface is free.
Its fierce independence and community-focused content is funded by that same community. We don’t do ads, sponsorships or paid-for content. If you like what we do you can support us by becoming a Dramface member for the price of a magazine.
However, if you’ve found a particular article valuable, you also have the option to make a direct donation to the writer, here: buy me a dram - you’d make their day. Thank you.
For more on Dramface and our funding read our about page here.