Mortlach 16 yo Distiller's Dram

 

 

 

43,4°

Distillery : Mortlach - Speyside

1st and 2d Fill European Sherry Casks

Original Bottling 

Core Range 

Single Malt

Launched in 2018

Totally Unpeated

 

 

 

This 16yo has nothing to do with the 16yo Flora & Fauna launched in 1992, which for a long time was the distillery's only single malt. Released three years after this first bottling was discontinued, it nevertheless pays tribute to it. Aged exclusively in Sherry casks like its predecessor, it has a higher alcohol content. The distillery distinguishes itself by using two and a half distillations, the last of which does not count in its entirety as only the heads and tails of the distillate are reused. This is one of the elements that give Mortlach its special character.

Let's Taste It : 

The nose is still very intense, with wood and smoked meat, but also softer and sweeter. More body and thickness too. Still good marmalade, this time quince marmalade. Thicker, more candied. Ripe greengages. The palate is both smooth and robust, very well done, red meat and blood oranges. Duck à l'orange, with a few spices, cloves, cumin, saffron. The finish is quite long, powerful just as it should be, woody, on figs. Loose earth, humus, small mossy plants.

In Short, 

You can't help but appreciate the work well done, the balance and the mastery of the different flavours. However, I prefer the 12 Year Old, where I find more character. Here, it is certainly more complex and deeper, but less assertive; the whisky is less itself in this bottling, in my humble opinion.

Score : 87

                                          To Be Listened While Sipping  :

  

                                          Beach House - Somewhere Tonight