The Dalmore has announced the third and final chapter of its Luminary Series — No 3 — offering two new single malt whiskies in collaboration with Ben Dobbin of renowned architecture practise Foster + Partners.
The first, The Dalmore Luminary 2025 Edition — The Rare, is aged 52 years and is the oldest whisky to be released in the Luminary series. Bottled at 40.3% ABV, the whisky was finished in multiple casks including vintage 1980 Calvados, 1940 Colheita Port, rare Tawny Port, 40 year old Pedro Ximénez Sherry, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine casks.
The whisky will be held in a specially designed decanter, housed within a bespoke sculpture designed by Dobbin. This will be offered at auction by Sotheby’s Hong Kong closing on 16 May, with 100% of proceeds donated to V&A Dundee, Scotland’s design museum.
The second, The Dalmore Luminary 2025 Edition — The Collectible, is aged 17 years. From initial maturation in American White Oak ex-Bourbon barrels, this whisky has been finished in a combination of seven casks, including both vintage and aged Calvados, rare Matusalem Sherry, rare Apostoles Sherry, select red wine casks from Bordeaux and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and fully matured American White Oak. The whisky is presented in a fold-out presentation case, which draws inspiration from the sculpture. Just 20,000 bottles will be made available globally from mid-May.
The producers have described the whisky as having aromas of Madagascan vanilla and cinnamon, with notes of rich butterscotch, red apples and tarte Tatin on the palate with dried apricots and ripe blackberries on the finish.
Ben Dobbin, Luminary No 3 and Senior Partner at Foster + Partners said: “As an architect, collaborating with The Dalmore has been absolutely fascinating. Technically, it has been a much more precise - yet creative process than I imagined. The Dalmore’s whisky makers think about flavour the way I think about art and design. Spending time at The Dalmore Distillery really shaped my design process and with the sculpture, I wanted to bring to life our shared sense of place, materiality, and how our worlds bridge.
“I have grown up with a love of whisky, thanks to my father, so was of course excited by the prospect of working with The Dalmore, though admittedly at the same time, it was a bit daunting at first to be working with some of whisky’s greatest taste makers in Richard and Gregg. However, we quickly understood that we experience and articulate in similar ways which made for an authentic and true partnership and resulting creations, which I am immensely proud of.”
The Dalmore Luminary Series No 3 follows two earlier collaborations, firstly with Kengo Kuma and Maurizio Mucciola, designers of V&A Dundee, and last year with Melodie Leung, designer and director at Zaha Hadid Associates, whose portfolio includes The Henderson Building in Hong Kong.
Richard Paterson OBE, master distiller of The Dalmore added: “This collaboration with Ben perfectly adds to and strengthens The Luminary Series, demonstrating a totally different and new dimension of what can be achieved when creative talents from different, yet complementary fields, unite.”
“It has been a pleasure to work together on this third edition of The Luminary Series and we are thrilled to be able to share the results for whisky and design lovers alike to enjoy, all whilst supporting our friends V&A Dundee in the great work that they do.”
The series officially launched at the Venice Biennale of Architecture — a prestigious exhibition of architecture from countries around the world. The global launch featured discussion from The Dalmore's Luminary collaborators — Ben Dobbin, Melodie Leung and Maurizio Mucciola — moderated by Professor Lesley Lokko OBE.
Gregg Glass, master whisky maker of The Dalmore adds: “Meeting Ben was a true meeting of minds. There are actually many similarities between whisky making and architecture, both being a very iterative process but also striving to create something that stands the test of time.
“We constantly endeavour to make masterpieces of malt and once again I am proud to say that The Dalmore Luminary Series showcases our commitment, whilst staying true to our shared vision and our overarching theme of creative flow and precision, elements important to both of us.”
