Dumbarton “Ghost Trilogy”- Cask 1

Paladin’s Signature Release

Three casks of Lowland Dumbarton distillery were acquired by Paladin for three of its clients. These casks were laid on 20th November 2000 and in November 2021, they all turned 21 years old. It was the first distillery to introduce American-style stainless steel columns, rather than copper stills, a radical and ahead of its time move at the installation. Dumbarton’s whisky was mostly reserved for the Ballantine’s blend and was never bottled as a single grain. The distillery shuttered in 2002 so this is literally one of the last batches of this exquisite Scotch left on the planet.

Paladin’s “Dram Team”  envisioned  that the soft palate of lowland regions could be further enhanced by a dessert wine cask sweetness. So, all three casks were uniquely finished!

Cask 1 of our GHOST TRILOGY was re-racked in a Marsala wine barrel and finished for over 6 months. Drawing its flavour from a fortified Italian (Sicily) wine barrel. Holding a fortified wine which in itself is considered a wine connoisseur’s favourite. Marsala consists of hints of Apricot, Vanilla, Tamarind, Brown Sugar and Tobacco.

The cask was then bottled on 21st December 2021, to keep in line with the theme of finding good luck in “2s”! Cue the coming of age of a unique Scotch – a 21-year-old,  bottled in 2021. This cask is sure to impress anyone with its distinct Scotch and finishing!

Tasting Notes

Colour –  Gold

Nose – an initial hit of lemon and lime cordial and freshly cut grass, followed by waves of a tropical sweetness, pineapple punch, lychee and a hint of caramel

Palate – a big slap of spice from the high ABV, white pepper, a delicate wooded note – pencil shavings. Back to the tropics for a burst of Pineapple, honeydew melon, lychee and banana. Rounded off with some boiled sweets

Finish – long and moreish. The rich oils cling to the palate, leaving you wanting more. Vanilla custard and caramel shine bright until it eventually disappears with a final reminder of the tropical notes that run through this dram

Conclusion –  a dram that transports you to your happy place, a beach in paradise. The sun is shining on this well rounded and perfectly balanced Lowland Single Grain. Sunshine in a glass.

The Genesis of an Idea

When Paladin first came across 2000 laid down casks of Dumbarton, the excitement was beyond belief from our in-house team! Here was a “turn of the century” gem, from one of the behemoths of Lowland, producing a SINGLE GRAIN scotch for the likes of Ballantine’s! Based on our research, production capacity at its height was said to be 25 million gallons a year! It is hard to believe that very little of these casks now remain. At once, we knew we had to bottle it.

The fabled Jim Murray, in his 2014 Whisky Bible notes, had given it a roaring 96.5 points with the following accompanying quote “Truly great whisky. Forget this being a grain, excellence is excellence. Full stop.”

History of a Ghost Distillery – Dumbarton

The distillery was built on the site of McMillan Shipyard on Castle Street, in Dumbarton Scotland. At some point in its development, it was one of the largest distilleries in Scotland-period (some would argue the whole of Europe).

What was rather unorthodox was the distillery is known to have used a rather unorthodox security system, “The Scotch Watch”, to protect its premises. It was initiated in 1959 by Tom Scott and commanded by a gander called “Mr Ballantine”. Originally, it consisted of just five Chinese white geese plus a gander. By 2001, however, the flock had grown to about 100 birds.

In 1988, Allied Brewers acquired Hiram Walkers. From which Allied Distillers was created shortly afterwards. In 2001, Dumbarton had an annual production of 25 million gallons of whisky being the major contributor for Ballantine’s blends. At the time, roughly 2000 people worked on the site of Dumbarton. The distillery used maize exclusively, which was imported from Canada and America due to its overseas ownership and also contributed to blends of Canadian Club Whisk(e)y.

Unfortunately, by 2002, Dumbarton had become a very “old-fashioned” distillery with no major renovations made to the site since it was built in the 1930s. The distillery was very difficult to upgrade because the tall column stills went up through the concrete floors, thus making the structure of the building very difficult to alter. So Allied Distillers moved its production to the Strathclyde Distillery. The security guards (geese) stayed behind when Dumbarton closed in 2002 and after 10 years, the remaining seven birds were at last retired and sent to live with an existing flock at Glasgow Green. The buildings have now been demolished to make way for a new housing development,  including the site’s iconic red tower.

Exclusivity

Only 215 bottles are possible at cask strength of 59.1% ABV! Grab a bottle before it is too late! And if you own the bottle and truly enjoyed it, we would love to hear from you at peb@paladininvesting.com

Additional Cask Releases

The 2nd and 3rd casks which complete the Trilogy have been finished in a Sauternes and a Moscatel cask and are also now available for purchase in the USA market. 

The next batch of rare casks to bottles is planned for 2024 with the release of the Ghost Trilogy Part II – Three uniquely finished Port Dundas casks. Stay tuned!