Mortlach distillery – the Beast beckons…

It was a long time ago now, but back in 1988, UDV (now Diageo) made the momentous and ground-breaking decision to launch the Classic Malts range. The launch of those six whiskies drew newfound attention to the world of single malts and helped propel the whisky boom we now find ourselves in.  Mortlach distillery was not one the original Classic Malts…

I often wonder about how the marketing team at the time set about choosing which distilleries would be featured in the Classic Malts range? Looking at the portfolio available to them, Glenkinchie for the Lowlands obviously chose itself, as did Talisker for the Islands.  But what about Speyside?  We know now that Cragganmore got the gig, which subsequently thrust that relatively small distillery into the limelight.  But how different might the whisky world be today, and the fortunes of one or two distilleries if they’d selected, for example, Dailuaine, Knockando, Mannochmore, or Glen Elgin?   Or Mortlach?

Mortlach distillery and its whisky has always marched to a different tune.  A big, meaty, powerful malt, it’s always been a popular component with the blenders, but its opportunities to shine as a single malt have been limited.  The lone OB Flora & Fauna release was a wonderfully robust dram, and some lucky folks may have tried the two Rare Malts releases, but you had to turn to the independents to really sink your teeth into the distillery.  In that respect, the Scotch Malt Whisky Society was particularly active, releasing over 50 single cask bottlings of Mortlach in the last five years alone.

However, in a whisky landscape where “super-premium” is today’s buzzword (and every drinks company’s objective), Diageo spotted a gap. The likes of Macallan and Dalmore had well and truly played the super-premium card, but it was here that Diageo decided Mortlach could finally have its time to shine.

And so it was in 2014 that Mortlach whisky was badged and launched as a luxury single malt.  It would be fair to say that the launch, at the time, attracted a wee bit of criticism, noting that the pricing was certainly set in the premium/luxury range and the bottles – striking as they were – were actually only 500ml for most markets.   Of course, the noisiest and most vitriolic response came from the blogosphere, but as we wrote about recently (see here), a lot of whisky bloggers need to appreciate that the industry does not exist for their benefit, and any business is allowed to identify and promote a high-end product in their portfolio at the price they decide the market can bear.  No argument from me.

The adage “you get what you pay for” has lost some currency and applicability in the world of Scotch over the last decade, and paying a high price for a whisky is absolutely no guarantee of quality. You can pay a high price for rarity, and you can pay a high price for lavish packaging, but that doesn’t mean the contents of the bottle are any good.  It was interesting to note that, whilst the unrest and noise was loud and unruly when Diageo announced their plans and pricing for the new Mortlach range, the misgivings started to disappear once people actually started to taste the new releases. In other words, the whiskies were actually good!

And so they should be.  For Mortlach distillery is a glorious, old distillery with a rich history, a healthy pedigree, and a wonderfully unique yet traditional production regime.  Founded in 1823, Mortlach distillery operated through mixed fortunes for a hundred years before being sold to John Walker & Sons in 1923.  The distillery continues to use wormtub condensors (contributing to the spirit’s meatiness – see photo above), and the distillation process – a confusing one to both explain and comprehend – results in a final spirit that can be said to be neither a double nor a triple distillation, but in fact works out mathematically to be a 2.81 distillation! (Strictly speaking, it’s a partial quadruple distillation, but similar partial triple distillations are carried out at Springbank and Benrinnes).  I’ve visited the distillery several times over the years.  It’s set into the hill on the south-eastern side of Dufftown, closed to the public, and operating quietly whilst some of its more famous neighbours on the northern outskirts of town accommodate the thousands of whisky tourists each year.

 

It’s easy to drive past the distillery, but the trained eye will pick the distinctive buildings – certainly the old decommissioned kiln and maltings which was shut down in 1968, yet remains as a striking structure as you can see in the photo above.  But let’s return to the present…

The Mortlach whisky range available in Australia consists of the Rare Old ($110), the 18yo ($280), and the 25yo ($1,000). These are all 500ml bottles, bottled at 43.4% ABV and it was on a warm Spring night on October 1^st that saw the Mortlach range officially launch in Sydney.

Mortlach Brand Ambassador, Georgie Bell (my former work buddy, courtesy of her years with The Scotch Malt Whisky Society) flew into Australia to conduct a series of launches and tastings around the country.  A seemingly odd choice of venue on the surface, I suspect most of the attendees probably struggled to grasp the link between the meatiness of Mortlach and the fact that the launch was actually held in a butcher’s shop! (Although a masterstroke IMHO). Mind you, this is no ordinary butcher’s shop: Victor Churchill is the pinnacle of butchery in Australia, and a small but vibrant crowd of around 25 people squeezed into the Woollahra premises to enjoy the night’s proceedings.

Guests were welcomed with Mortlach cocktails and some tasty nibbles before Andrew Morley, Luxury Marketing Manager for Diageo, called the room to attention and introduced Georgie. Georgie wasted no time in giving the history and rundown of the distillery, before the first whisky – the Rare Old – was circulated around the room.  This was my first encounter with the Rare Old but, to my disappointment, the whisky was served in large round tumblers, which made it difficult to capture the nose.   The spirit was reasonably well-bodied on the palate, and whilst the average age of this NAS release will forever remain a secret, there was sufficient oak and flavour development to carry the dram.  Four cask types contribute to the vatting (1^st Fill American & European casks – presumably bourbon and sherry respectively – and then both refill and re-juvenated casks), giving the blender plenty of scope to create the flavour profile.

 

An impressive ice block was on display in the butcher’s preparation area, and it was at this point that a rather talented ice carver stepped up to the plate and started to slice up the block and prepare some very impressive, large, hand-chipped ice cubes. However, what happened next was a little unusual and continues to trouble me:  The ice cubes were distributed around the room on a tray and attendees were invited/instructed to add an ice cube to their dram.  Now I have no problem at all with folks who choose to enjoy their whisky with ice, and if you like your dram chilled and diluted, then be my guest.  However, personal preferences aside, it is a truth universally acknowledged (with apologies to Jane Austen) that adding ice to whisky chills the dram; reduces the potency and diversity of the nose/aromas; and it locks up and reduces both the depth and body of the palate.  Further, it reduces the discernment, intensity, and breadth of the whisky’s flavours.  I was therefore a little confused and bemused that a brand would choose to present its flagship expression in such a way, and one wonders why they would elect to showcase the whisky in anything but its best possible light?   Never mind, we moved on to more interesting and tasty pursuits…

 

The room was invited to shuffle down to one of the meat and charcuterie preparation areas, where the Mortlach 18yo release was handed out. This was served in an appropriate copita-style glass and on its own two feet without ice.  And it delivered. This is a seriously good whisky: The spirit is rich with both sweet and savoury flavour development (toffee, citrus, spice, and malt) and the proportion and balance of sherry was “just right”, without actually dominating or pushing the dram into the heavily sherried category. 1^st fill and refill sherry casks contribute to the vatting and the balance is one I wish other distilleries could master, for this is a whisky you can spend some serious time with. The mouthfeel was also silky and the whisky’s strength at 43.4% worked surprisingly well.

A further treat was then in store with resident butcher, Luke Twemlow, giving a short talk on the history and philosophy of Victor Churchill, before going on to present one of the most impressive and tasty charcuterie boards I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing.  Featuring bresaola, prosciutto, biltong and two other cured delicacies (whose names I’m guilty of not recalling), the flavours and textures were sublime and worked beautifully with the 18yo Mortlach.

Alas, at this stage, yours truly had to make an early departure for another commitment, but I left satisfied and knowing that the 18yo is one seriously well-crafted whisky that should satisfy any discerning palate.   My apologies for the lack of detailed and thorough tasting notes; this was somewhat difficult at a stand-up event whilst holding two glasses and a camera! 

The last item worth mentioning is the stunning effort Diageo went to to personalise some bottles of the Rare Old and to give them an Australian fingerprint: 30 bottles were embossed with the Sydney Harbour Bridge – a fitting nod to the Mortlach bottle design that was inspired by Victorian engineering and features the chords & web struts of a suspended bridge truss.  Forgive me, I am a structural engineer, after all.   It’s been two days and four hours since my last calculation…

Cheers,
AD

[UPDATE: Three years is a long time in the whisky world.  The above Mortlach range failed to strike a chord with its audience, and was discontinued.  In July 2018, Mortlach launched a new range.  Details can be found here.]