Close your eyes and name a Scotch with a stag’s head on the front label…..The Dalmore?  Located on the other side of Loch Ness, far from Glenfiddich, these copper stills belong to The Dalmore’s Alness distillery. Founded in 1839 by an opium trader, the stag on the label came from a MacKenzie family legend after they bought the distillery in 1886.  The legends says that a MacKenzie saved a Scottish King in battle and was granted the royal stag as his family crest.

In the world of independent scotch merchants, brokers and bottlers, Duncan Taylor is one of the most important names. For me, this was the first private label scotch that I ever tried, and I tried 3 of their recent bottlings all from single casks: Caol Isla 1981 27 year old, Dallas Dhu 1981 27 year old, and The Dalmore 1990 17 year old.
Founded in 1938 in Glasgow, Duncan Taylor did most of its business as a cask broker until very recently, when the company’s focus switched to developing its own brand, with the distilleries as a …