Mannochmore 12 Year Old 2008 Watt Whisky

Mark Watt recently launched his own whisky brand, the wonderfully alliterating What Whisky. The first release included, among other, this young Mannochmore, a vatting of two hogsheads that were finished for three months on a brandy cask.

I smell apple sauce on steroids, peach, sultanas, honey and green grapes. Blind, I might have called this cognac, which means to me that it must have been a very active cask in which this malt was allowed to be finished.

Wonderfully soft mouthfeel, but immediately quite feisty on fresh ginger and a truckload of pepper. Nicely creamy though. The feeling of cognac returns quickly in the shape of baked apples sprinkled with brown sugar, a hint of caramel and toffee, and a big portion of nuts and something of caramelised orange peel.

Wonderfully long finish, honey sweet, with an uppercut of citrus and pepper that makes you gasp for breath.

Very good. The cast has given this Mannochmore a beautiful extra dimension. You would almost think that my namesake knows what he's doing – just kidding Mark!

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