MacKinlay Rare Old Highland Malt

 • The saga of Shackleton's whisky -- the discovery in early 2007 of a cache of spirits left behind by an early 20th Century expedition to the South Pole -- has all the elements of derring-do from an era when men and their potables were rustic, burly and beyond the scope of mortals.

Recreating a legend seldom fares well. Witness the flops we saw in trying to revive "Charlie's Angels" on TV this season. But, such dangers did not deter its makers from producing Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt.

The saga began during explorer Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition of 1907-1909. He and his group barely escaped alive, and left behind 100 cases of Mackinlay’s. Fast forward to February 2007 and we have other explorers unearthing -- or de-icing -- the whisky stash. It was dispatched to Whyte & Mackay, the original brand owner. There, master blender Richard Paterson headed up a team that sought to recreate the original spirit.

What they wound up is a blend of whiskies, some as old as 30, that is somewhat shy yet spicy at first imporession. As it opens, we are treated to notes of melon, cinnamon, vanilla, leather and menthol that Paterson and company found in the original flavor.

Since it is based on the flavor profile of a historical oddity rather than on a major prize-winner,   I didn't know what to be prepared for but I was pleased with what I got. A lingering, slightly sweet finish makes a nice finish with a lot less bite than in the original impact.

Suggested retail price: $150-plus for the 750ml bottle.

Go to Dowd's Spirits Notebook.

Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve

• Put a good Scotch whisky in a mixture of 70%-30% Olorosso Sherry and American White Oak casks, and you come up with this winner.

I haven't smoked in a quarter-century, but I still fondly recall the aroma of a fine cigar accompanied by a fine whisky. Sampling the Dalmore Cigar Malt Reserve put me back in those more carefree, and careless, times.

The initial slight cigar-smoke nose, with backnotes of lighter tobacco, loamy soil, caramel and spice, promise the palate a good time. Then, true to that promise, comes an alluring, rich taste experience.

A surprising number of fruit notes emerge as one lets the amber liquid loll on the tongue -- pineapple, mango, kiwi -- along with the expected toffee and vanilla.

This whisky is matured for most of its life in Oloroso Matusalem sherry butts and bottled at 44% alcohol by volume (88 proof). Even without a cigar, it's a fine, fine dram. So fine, in fact, that it earned a gold medal in the Beverage Tasting Institute's global competition in June.

Suggested retail price: $125 for the 750ml bottle.

Go to Dowd's Spirits Notebook.