Gleann Mór Rare Find Summer 2026 ‘Art of Contrast’ Collection - Blair Athol, Deanston, Dalmunach, Mystery Islay
From the Rare Find Whisky website
Gleann Mor Spirits Company has been on a journey, evolving and maturing - just like the finest whisky. From humble beginnings on a Leith industrial estate to our current operation, including a vast cask inventory in our extended bonded warehouse, Rare Find has become the crown jewel of our craft, reserved only for the most exceptional single malts.
Each Rare Find release is an unrepeatable, limited-edition whisky sourced from sought-after distilleries. With every bottle, we celebrate liquid excellence - meticulously selecting, maturing, and finishing in the highest quality casks to deliver whisky that's rare by design.
Blair Athol 12 - 56.1%
Distilled in 2013 and bottled in 2026, following maturation in a first-fill bourbon cask. Bottled at cask strength, natural colour and without chill filtration.
Appearance: Pale white wine in colour, forms a thick line which beads before gradually falling as thick, oily legs
Nose: Cream soda, vanilla pods, Lyon’s Golden Syrup pudding, Royal icing, apple sauce and a touch of pepper
Palate: Iced Apple Danish pastries, lemon citrus and sharp white pepper. Water brings oaky astringency at the expense of some of the orchard fruit and vanilla notes
Finish: Baked apples, mild oak and white pepper warmth
Overall: I can’t remember trying a bourbon cask Blair Athol before so it was a nice opportunity to try a more stripped back version. It turns out to be an enjoyable marriage of spirit and cask, bringing lots of patisserie notes. For me this is better neat, there’s a little spice there but not enough to be unpleasant and the addition of water made it feel a little less rounded.
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Deanston 14 - 57.3%
Distilled in 2011 and bottled in 2026, following maturation in a first-fill Napa Valley wine cask. Bottled at cask strength, natural colour and without chill filtration.
Tasting Notes
Appearance: Tawny in colour, forms a thick line which beads before gradually falling as thick, oily legs
Nose: Red fruits, balsamic glazed strawberries and raspberry coulis, cinnamon cereal bars and a hint of ginger
Palate: Thick, waxy and drying mouthfeel. Dried fruit, stewed plums, treacle toffee, crystallised ginger and peppery sharpness. With water the balsamic strawberry note from the nose comes through together with California raisins
Finish: Dried fruit, astringent tannic oak, cinnamon and white pepper
Overall: A really interesting Deanston, the characteristic waxiness of the spirit is there, although the typical maltiness takes more of a back seat and allows the juicy red fruit notes from the wine cask to really shine. It’s a lovely whisky with a decent amount of complexity, for me it’s better with a little water as takes away a little of the tannic astringency.
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Dalmunach 9 - 60.6%
Distilled in 2016 and bottled in 2026 and finished for 17 months in first-fill Oloroso seasoned quarter cask. Bottled at cask strength, natural colour and without chill filtration.
Tasting Notes
Appearance: Old gold in colour, forms a thin line which beads before gradually falling as thick, oily legs
Nose: Icing sugar, lemon drizzle cake, fruits of the forest coulis and butterscotch toffee
Palate: Initially, dark chocolate enrobed strawberries and baked apples. Chocolate covered marzipan, chicory coffee, treacle toffee, hazelnut purée, Brandy Snap biscuits and a touch of peppery warmth follow. A few drops of water brings out more almond and ginger notes
Finish: Long and lingering nutty chocolate and warming ginger gradually evolving into pecan Danish pastries
Overall: Such a lovely whisky, with a remarkable amount of depth provided by the use of the Oloroso quarter cask. The finish on this whisky is exceptional, slowly developing to leave pecan Danish lingering well after everything else has disappeared.
Mystery Islay 9yo - 57.9%
Distilled in 2017 and bottled in 2026, this single malt received an 18-month finish in a first-fill Oloroso sherry seasoned quarter cask. Bottled at cask strength, natural colour and without chill filtration.
Appearance: Burnished gold in colour, forms a thin line which beads before gradually falling as thick, oily legs
Nose: Salty sea breeze, softly medicinal peat smoke, beach barbecued fish, tapenade and zesty lemon citrus. Becomes drying with a few drops of water
Palate: Caramel sweetness, lemon citrus, ashy smoke with a touch of phenolic iodide, coastal brine, nutty oak and a touch of flinty minerality.
Finish: Oak spice, bonfire smoke, lemon zest, maritime brine and a prickle of pepper
Overall: A very nice example of a youngish Islay whisky. As is always the case with these mystery Islay bottles, there is much speculation as to the identity. My first thoughts when this hit the palate was that it feels like Caol Ila, although it wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been completely wrong. I must admit I didn’t pick up a lot of the Oloroso quarter cask influence, but it’s a very enjoyable dram nonetheless.
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Summary
This was a very strong line up of quality whiskies. Normally when I do one of these tasting sessions there are one or two which don’t quite hit the spot for me, but in this case there isn’t a single one that I would refuse if offered a dram.
My favourite of the night was unexpected, but the finish on the Dalmunach was so good I’m still thinking about it four days later, so it has to take top spot.
A lot of whisky drinkers, myself included, often look towards independent bottlers for something out of the ordinary. However, different isn’t always better, with the ability of the independent bottler to select and manage the spirit being the crucial factor in the quality of the finished product. On the evidence I’ve seen so far, Gleann Mór really know their stuff, and this Rare Find range shows them at the top of their game.
If you would like to know more about the Rare Find range of whiskies, follow the link to their website
Transparency: Received free of charge for independent review, all opinions are my own and remain completely impartial.
