Mortlach 12 Year Old 2002 Dram 242

Dram 242 is a Belgian whisky shop, run by Dirk Verleysen. In 2014 they bottled a 12 Year Old Mortlach, only 77 bottles strong, shared with the German Maltbarn.

Ha! This Mortlach is immediately in your face! Wonderful fruity notes (think apricots, coconut and stewed pears), loads of caramel (close to candied sugar) and some green herbs, but also some heavy sherry notes giving it some weight. A drop of balsamico and another drop of rancio with a hint of freshly sawn wood. Woodspices. Liquorice. A meaty side – I was kinda waiting for it and it does not disappoint in that regard. There is a lot going on here! Water makes it more herbal.

It offers a good mouthfeel, almost syrupy even. Spicy from the start, but also wonderfully sweet. Turkish Delight, caramelized oranges, raisins, pineapple on syrup, garden herbs with a hint of broth. Beautiful. It loses quite a bit of strength with the addition of water (doh!) and becomes a tad less sweet. That was not such a good idea.

You would not be remiss for calling the finish long. It is spicy and warm until the very end.

Great choice. Goes well with pastry. Careful with water! I do wonder where the rest of this cask went. Thanks, Wim.

Find where to buy Mortlach whisky