Dailuaine distillery is located in Carron, Aberlour, Banffshire and comes under the Speyside whisky region.

It was founded in 1852 by William Mackenzie and after his death in 1865 his wife leased the distillery to James Fleming.

In 1879, Thomas Mackenzie (William's Son) and James Fleming form MacKenzie & Co.

In 1884 Dailuaine was rebuilt and became one of the largest distilleries in the region at that time.

In 1889 Dailuaine became the first distillery to have a pagoda roof, a feature which today is synonymous with Scottish distilleries.

Between 1891-1916 and thanks to various mergers, the company name changed to Dailuaine-Glenlivet, then Dailuaine-Talisker and in 1916, DCL acquired a share of the comapny.

Dailuaine-Talisker became part of DCL in 1925, then it was transferred to SMD in 1930 and today is run under Diageo's "UDV" subsidiary.

More great distillery info here, thanks to Malt Madness

My thanks to Willie JJ for permission to copy & use the distillery photos

General whisky characteristics: Smooth, malt, fruit, floral, sometimes a little smoke

Dailuaine,  16y, 43% ABV

(OB) Flora & Fauna bottling

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€

Nose: Treacle toffee and dry smoked ham with just a hint of citrus

Palate: Very smooth with the treacle toffee initially dominating, but quickly followed by a burst of floral hay.

Finish: Notes of liquorice

Overall Impression: Very smooth nnd pleasant, I like this whisky.

Independent Bottlers

Master of Malt, Dailuaine,  27y, 53.6% ABV

Master of Malt bottling, Summer 2011

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€ to €€€€€

Dram-atics live review

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Rich yellow gold

Nose: The nose has lots of fine antique wood, so much so that I've just been transported into a fine country house study with antique oak furniture and book shelves. There are also wonderful floral overtones, in fact I've just opened the study window on a spring day to allow the aromas of the country garden to enter.

The palate is dominated by wood and almond which are briefly interrupted by a burst of coconut, followed by cherry, banana and apple.

With 4 drops of water the nose becomes even more aromatic with spicy wood. The palate is softer and lighter but also has more prominent wood.

Finish: Long, delightfully fruity wood.

Overall Impression: This is a surprisingly light whisky for its 27 years of age, but it still offers some magnificent aromas and flavours. In fact the wood, almond and fruit of the Dailuaine are magnificent in the way they are very prominent, but at the same in a rather sophisticated and almost subdued way.  I like it. I like it a lot.

Master of Malt, Dailuaine,  4.9.1983 - July 2011, 27y, 53.6% ABV

Refill sherry hogshead, bottle No.69 of 231

Typical cost of this bottle; €€€€€ (just, €75)

Reviewed (blind) as part of MMA 2011

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Rich gold

Nose: This has all the attributes of polished wood, oak book shelves filled with old first editions and even a suggestion of aged leather furniture, but all overlaid with the floral aromas of spring flowers. This develops further to offer slightly scorched wood, or perhaps more like the glowing embers of a log fire and hints of slightly herbal smoke.

Palate: Lightly floral marzipan combined with a larger selection of mixed fruit and nuts, although I must admit the individual elements are quite difficult to place as there's just so much happening here.

Finish: Extremely long and rich with some lightly sherried flora.

Overall Impression: Marvellous, I really love this whisky.

Archives, Dailuaine 1983, 47.3% ABV

Typical cost of this bottle  €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Pale yellow gold

Nose: An immediate burst of fresh (outdoors) flora followed by a fruitiness reminiscent of green apple. Then come hints of vanilla and papaya, in fact I'm suddenly thinking of warm apple crumble served with custard and decorated with exotic fruits.

Palate: The fruitiness is even richer on the palate with mango, papaya, kiwi and mandarin alongside creamy and buttery vanilla.

Finish: Long, creamy and fruity.

Overall Impression: Sweet and gentle creamy fruitiness. Very nice indeed.

James MacArthur, Dailuaine 12y, 62.4% ABV

Cask 6911

Typical cost of this bottle  unsure, but probably €€€€€ to €€€€€

Glass: Classic Malt

Colour: Very pale yellow

Nose: Quite spirity here, but behind this I detect an oakiness, perhaps even furniture polish or even Brasso.

Palate: Also spirity, is this just due to the high abv? It's also really quite fruity with suggestions of passion fruit and raspberry, rather nice. I now detect faint hints of cappuccino leading into the finish.

Finish: Very long.

Overall Impression: I'm guessing the spiritiness would be tamed with a few drops of water, but this was really very enjoyable without. I like it.