Speyside

Cadenhead’s Small Batch Mortlach 21 Yr Single Malt Scotch Whisky

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Cadenhead’s Small Batch Mortlach 21 Yr
Single Malt Scotch Whisky

53.5% ABV
$150
Website
Cadenhead's Mortlach 21 yr Small Batch Single Malt Scotch Whiskey

What the Producer Says

Distilled in 1994 at the Mortlach Distillery.
Matured in Bourbon Hogshead for 21 years.
Bottled in 2015.
One of only 492 bottles.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Vanilla sponge cake, raw almonds, subtle peat and vegetal notes, nectarines, tropical fruit, heather, tobacco, rice pudding, allspice and a hint of ginger.
Palate:  Spicy bite, fruity with apricots, nectarines, pears, pepper spice, honey, walnuts, allspice, chocolate, and cherries.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with apricots and a nutty pepper spice.
Comments:  Really nice dram – sharp neat but a bit of water brings out more chocolate and cherries, and thickens nicely. Here in the United States, we see ‘small batch’ used commonly in the world of bourbon despite having zero legal meaning (could be as few as a single barrel, or as many barrels as you want – 50, 500, 5,000, limit is only your imagination). It is much less common in Scotch whisky. In this case, there being 492 bottles of this small batch, it is likely only 2 or 3 casks (a hogshead cask is 250 liters, which would be 357 750 mL bottles full; scotch whisky loses about 2% to evaporation each year, do some math and you land at 2 casks with slightly less than 2%, or 3 casks).

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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Game of Thrones Six Kingdoms Mortlach 15 Yr Old

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Game of Thrones Six Kingdoms Mortlach 15 Yr Old
Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$95-$150
Website
Mortlach_Game_of_Thrones_15_Years

What the Distillery Says

This Mortlach Single Malt Scotch Whisky that has been aged for 15 years, is presented in a metallic gold canister that features an intricate pen and ink drawing of the Three-Eyed Raven as seen throughout the eight seasons of the series. The Six Kingdoms packaging pays homage to the last Greenseer, whose ability to see beyond the constraints of time and unravel the intricate stories that held the tapestry of Westeros together proved to be his ultimate power.

The Mortlach Distillery is built on the site of a historic battle and is the first to legitimately rule over Dufftown’s whisky trade. Influenced by its own collection of historical figures, the Mortlach’s signature method to distil the liquid exactly 2.81 times is a complex process as unique as the Three-Eyed Raven character.

TASTING NOTES
NOSE: Opens with red apple and warming spice notes, before hints of toffee apple, wood spice, and ripe cranberry appear.
PALATE: Fresh fruit & creamy vanilla, woody, aromatic spice combining with hints of cinnamon and a warming woodiness.
FINISH: Lingering vanilla, spice, and dark chocolate.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sherry bomb with dark fruits, blood orange, vanilla, hint of smoke, worn leather, sulfur with a subtle note of grapefruit.
Palate:  Thick mouthfeel, fruit dripping with caramel and honey, bananas, orange cream, subtle oak and spice with pepper, allspice and nutmeg.
Finish:  Moderately long with dark fruit and oak.
Comments:  Really lovely dram. I’ve enjoyed a few Mortlach offerings before Diageo decided to position them as a high-end (read high-priced) label. Don’t get me wrong – they’re delicious, and this one is too. I’ve seen this on-line for under $100, at which price I’d be a buyer for sure; at $150 I’m less sure..

Rating: Stands Out/Must Try

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The Singleton of Dufftown 15 Yr

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

The Singleton of Dufftown 15 Yr
Single Malt Scotch Whisky

40% ABV
$70
Website (sort of)
The Singleton of Dufftown 15 year old

What the Bottle* Says

Fruity Decadence
Vibrantly fruity, chocolatey and subtly spiced.

Indulge in this deeply delectable 15 Year Old. Here we’ve got whisky from both refill ex-Bourbon casks, known for imparting a kiss of sumptuous vanilla, and Pedro Ximenez Oloroso seasoned casks, which infuse some fruity vibrancy into the spirit. There’s lots to explore in this exciting dram. With zesty coriander, zingy pepper, decadent chocolate and creamy coffee, this is a tasty treasure trove to delight in.

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sweet and savory, with dark fruit notes of raisins and plums, honey and oak with herbal notes of fresh oregano and tobacco.
Palate:  Thin but sweet, lightly fruity with pears, apples and hints of plum, vanilla and caramel with a subtle spice.
Finish:  Moderately long with fruity malt notes and a bit of oak.
Comments:  A very pleasant, light and fruity dram. Wish it was higher proof, as it wasn’t off-putting but was a tad boring? One I enjoyed nosing more than sipping, as there was more depth going on with the nose where the palate thinned out.

Rating: Average/Stands Out

 

* A rant: I get that some smaller producers don’t have well organized web-sites, or don’t always keep them up. Diageo isn’t a small company. Why in the hell their ‘Singleton’ site makes zero mention of the Dufftown releases is beyond me. I assumed perhaps this was discontinued, but it is fairly widely available on the other side of the pond. Just to get the details on the bottle required a fair amount of searching for label images because Diageo apparently doesn’t want you to be able to find squat on this bottle. I went so far as to connect via VPN to a UK server to ensure they weren’t trying to limit information where the product might not be available – nothing. For the most part, going to a distiller/producer/blender’s site and getting the details to populate these reviews is pretty straight forward. Every once in it seems like they really don’t want you to know of a bottle’s existence.

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Aberlour 16 Year Old Double Cask Matured

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Aberlour 16 Year Old Double Cask Matured
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky

40% ABV
$75-$100
Website
Aberlour 16 Year

What the Distillery Says

Fruity & Deep
With the depth and complexity that comes from being matured for 16 years in a combination of American Oak casks and the finest Sherry butts, this expression’s warm and fruity notes are enriched by an engagingly spicy sweetness.

Colour: Rich golden amber
Nose: Rich scented floral and sweet raisin aromas with spicy nutiness
Palate: Smooth and full with sweet, floral and spicy flavours and notes of plum and gentle oak
Finish: Long, warm, spicy fruitiness

What Gary Says

Nose:  Sherry bomb, fruitcake full of raisins, apricots and plums, cloves, oak, smoke, cigar paper and spent matches.
Palate:  Creamy mouthfeel, sweet with dark fruit, plums, raisins, oak, pepper, cinnamon, and clove.
Finish:  Moderately long, drying with pepper, sherry and oak.
Comments:  This is a sherry bomb with an oaky edge, and drinks a tad hot to me. Water tamps some of those edges, but leaves a sulfury note – and the finish degrades. That sulfury/spent matches note is something I’ve gotten in nearly every Aberlour I’ve tasted, and it just isn’t in my wheelhouse (sure, give me some worn Band-aids with an Islay single malt and I’m happy, but leave the spent matches please). Outside of that, it has a nice mouthfeel, so if you’re a fan of Aberlour, this probably won’t disappoint (and if like me you’re just not – this probably won’t be the dram that changes your mind).

Rating: Average/Stands Out

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Compass Box Myths & Legends II

/ / Review, Scottish Whisky, Speyside / ,

Compass Box Myths & Legends II
Single Malt Scotch Whisky

46% ABV
$150
Website
Compass Box Myths and Legends II

What the Blender Says

Scotch whisky has a rich array of stories, myths and legends.

However, what start as myths can become received wisdom, influencing our understanding and restricting our enjoyment. We have deployed blending to challenge assumptions, biases and prejudices concerning Scotch in this limited edition series we call Myths & Legends.

Myths & Legends II blends together malt whiskies of different ages from a single Speyside distillery. We wish to show how process matters more than provenance when it comes to the flavours of single malts. In addition to the aromas of tropical fruits and butterscotch you will also discover subtle savoury notes and spiciness.

The distinctive profile has nothing to do with “Speyside”; process decisions made at the distillery, the effects of maturation, and our own choices regarding the balance of the final blend determine the whisky’s quality and character. Clues to a whisky’s flavour lie in the glass and not the distillery’s region.

FLAVOUR PROFILE: Expressive tropical fruitiness combines with silky butterscotch and sweet spices.

SERVING RECOMMENDATIONS: Serve neat to appreciate the spicy and waxy character. Alternatively, pour over a large cube or ball of ice to accentuate the deliciously rounded mouthfeel and tease out notes of pineapple.

Not Chill-Filtered, Light 5 Micron Filtration | Natural Colour | Lead Whiskymakers: Jill Boyd and James Saxon | A limited edition of 4,446 bottles | July 2019

What Gary Says

Nose:  Tropical fruit salad with coconut, peaches and mangos; toffee, subtle oak, heather and floral notes.
Palate:  Thick and creamy mouthfeel, rich fruit notes of peaches and pears, spices, butterscotch, light caramel, toffee, nutmeg, a faint hint of clove.
Finish:  Long with a bit of pepper amongst fruit notes.
Comments:  Wow – Myths & Legends stepping up with the second installment!  A lovely, rich dram.  Another distillery which I’m unfamiliar with – this time Glen Elgin, consisting of casks from 16 to 23 years old.  I need to find some independent bottlings (which isn’t to detract from the blending skills involved in creating this gem).  This is both elegant and robust at the same time – an absolutely lovely whisky.  Raising the bar as I look to the conclusion (although to be clear – nothing says you have to try them in succession).

Rating: Must Try/Must Buy

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