Nose: A wonderfulnose
of
lemon peel, peach, coffee, strong dark chocolate, gentle pipe tobacco and Finnish licorice
,
then I found the palette quite spicy, but also mild. The alcohol is incredibly well integrated despite the relatively high percentage (52%) and the flavors are nicely balanced. A few drops of water opened up the whisky further and brought some lovely notes with it.
Palate : The first thing that hits the tongue is roasted hazelnuts, followed by malt, dried orange, peach, red grapes, granola, coconut and cinnamon sugar
.
The aftertaste finishes the expression beautifully and left me hungry for a reunion. In addition to a powerful and delicious bitterness, it offered notes reminiscent of the fragrance.
Finish: An incredibly pleasant, medium-long aftertaste of coffee, gentle tannins, grapefruit and vanilla sugar.
It's always a pleasure to be poured a glass of Mortlach, but the experience is greatly enhanced when you get a clean, non-chillfiltered, cask strength version like this bottling from Signatory Vintage. This is a whisky that both the new and seasoned whisky enthusiast will enjoy, perhaps for different reasons.
About Mortlach
If you come to Scotland and drive to Speyside, the town of Dufftown is where Mortlach's small distillery has been located since 1823, when the distillery was founded. Incidentally, as the first (legal) distillery in the town. Over the years, Mortlach has achieved an almost mythical, cult-like status, as their exquisite whisky has only been produced in small quantities, most of which has been used by master blenders to create the backbone of other distilleries' vintage whiskies. Among others in
Johnnie Walker. And since there is no visitor centre as such, or the ability to visit without an appointment, the distillery has always had a bit of a reputation as the 'secret' distillery. The distillery: The distillery hall itself is huge, and the first thing that strikes you is the many different types of boilers used. Normally you're used to the same type of boiler, but at Mortlach, one of the characteristics is the use of different boiler shapes. The result is a spirit with different flavors, which is precisely the purpose of Mortlach.Mortlach Whisky is distilled through a complex process: some are blended twice, others three or more times. There are six stills in total, three for wash and three for spirit. One wash and spirit boiler work together as in a normal distillery. The last two wash boilers also work together. Most of their low-wine is collected at the top, which is passed on to the larger of the two remaining spirit kettles. The weakest is put into the smaller kettle (also called The Wee Witchie). Here it is brought to the boil and returned to the kettle and the process is repeated. Only on the third portion is the heart separated from the foreshots and feints. The result is that three different types of spirits with different strengths are collected. The fact that a Mortlach contains all three types of spirit is what gives it its strength and distinctive character. Maturation: The whisky is then matured in sherry casks and, to a lesser extent, bourbon casks. The result is a whiskey that has been nicknamed the "The Beast of Dufftown". A significant portion has always been used in blended whiskey (Johnnie Walker), and the distillery was primarily known for a 16 year old that was occasionally released.
