Mortlach 25 year old 1994 Gordon & MacPhail, cask 8181

One last Mortlach. Literally, this is the last Mortlach sample in the stash. I've never sought out Mortlach samples, not because of my feelings towards the whisky, but some residue still clings from Diageo's infamous attempt to rebrand Mortlach as an ultra-premium whisky a decade ago. Though the move was ultimately a complete branding fail, it outed many many many allegedly-independent whisky writers as full-tilt Industry Apologists, becoming one of the stupidest — and truest — things I've witnessed in my 20+ years of whisky fandom. Also, the "Rare Old" was crap.

I do like many independently-bottled Mortlachs, especially the fruity bourbon casks. Until today's whisky, I appreciated modern sherry cask Mortlachs without ever loving one. SPOILER ALERT: I 🩶 heart this one.

Distillery: Mortlach
Owner: Diageo
Region: Speyside (Dufftown)
Independent Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail

Range: Connoisseurs Choice Cask Strength
Age: 25.9918 years (31 August 1994 - 28 August 2020)
Maturation: first-fill sherry butt
Cask#: 8181
Outturn: 606 bottles

Alcohol by Volume: 52.8%

(from a bottle split)

NEAT

The nose says, Figs and cloves and black walnuts and baked peaches oh my. Quieter notes of toasty oak and old parmesan linger in the background. The flavorful palate starts with dates, plums, mulled wine, and a touch of bitter tobacco. Dried blueberries fill the middle, and a yuzu-like tartness highlights the edges. It finishes with the plums, yuzus, and dried blueberries, with a hint of a spicy cigar.

DILUTED to ~46%abv, or 1¼ tsp of water per 30mL whisky

Now the nose offers a little bit of malt to go with the toasted oak. Roasted almonds, brine, dry sherry, and hay. Tar, anise, and a few flowers appear later. The palate has gotten prettier. More fresh fruit (red plum, lychee, and lemon) and more dried figs! It's not that sweet, and a good dose of sea salt helps it out. The finish offers all the palate's fresh fruits with a zing of ginger in the back.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

While the distillery's storied heavy spirit is mostly absent from the whisky, the notes of fresh and dried fruits, along with the salt and possible smoke, keep this from becoming an all-cask Mortlach. But this was a damned fine butt. The whisky is a bit of a fighter at full strength then relaxes once diluted, probably all due to the oak. It may be more of a thinker than a drinker, but it's certainly not the average sherried beast. FWIW, a decent sample size of the Whiskybase community seems quite fond of it as well.

Availability - Secondary market
Pricing - ???
Rating - 89