Mortlach 46 Year Old 1936 Gordon & Macphail
Pre-war Gem
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Review by @markjedi1
- Nose~
- Taste~
- Finish~
- Balance~
- Overall94
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At a local whisky festival I spotted a bottle of Mortlach that just screamed to be picked up. It was not just the price tag of 55 EUR for a 2cl dram. The fact that the label sported 1936 in large print, means this is a pre-war whisky. This Mortlach was bottled after 46 long years of maturation, somewhere in the early eighties, by Gordon & Macphail.
The nose immediately reveals this is old whisky. It could be my mindset, I am sure, but it has something wonderfully dusty. Underneath is a wonderfully aromatic nose in complex layers. First the sherry arrives. Dark fruit, dark honey. Prunes, Chrismas cake, eucalyptus, apricot marmalade. Leather and something that reminds me of resin. Fresh garden herbs and some pipe tobacco. But it is not over yet. Camphor, berries, caramel, candied sugar and a mild smokiness. I could smell this for an hour (which I did). Magnificent!
Ha, the dust returns on the palate. Grand attack and quite powerful for only 40%. The fruit only emerges after a superb combination of toffee, nougat and mint. Slight bitterness from grapefruit. Pretty waxy and smoky. Berries, raisins, mirabelles. It has it all and more. Almonds, honey, Turkish delight. Nutmeg, ginger and cinnamon. Chocolate! Mocha! It keeps developing. Only towards the end does it reveal the drying quality of the wood. The balance is unheard of!
On the long, smoky finish I get some tea and beeswax. Superb!
They do not make them like this anymore, that is for sure. What a gem! This bottle will set you back around 3.800 EUR, though. The Whisky Ambassador of the Year 2013, Eric Vermeire, still has a few, so if your piggybank can do with a diet, contact him. You will get a stunning whisky in return. I am not tasting anything else today. That would be blasphemy.
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Wow, sounds like a extraordinary whisky experience! I am envious... :)
Would I be correct in thinking that the dustiness that you refer to could be a representation of 'old bottle effect'? I've never tried a whisky that could have been affected by this phenomenon, but have always been curious as to how it would be presented in a whisky's profile.