A fantastic 15 year old whisky, distilled in 1971. Bottled in 1986 by R.W Duthie & Co of Aberdeen, this was for the Corti Brothers of Sacramento.
86 us proof means 43% vol. Easy penny. What’s sure is that these Corti brothers knew their scotches. As for 1971, Diageo have issued a proprietary 32 yo 1971/2004 that was one of the best whiskies ever bottled. Just believe me. Colour: pale gold. Nose: it’s not quite sulphur that comes out, its rather soot, waxed papers, shoe polish and whatnot. And tree bark, roots… To be honest, I’m finding this baby a little shy. Shy-ish. Perhaps not for modern noses? Mouth: I’m afraid it’s great. Not deep, not wide, not ‘3D’, but great. I don’t know how these Californian noses used to select their whiskies from the lady in Aberdeen – that was before Cadenhead/R.W. Duthie moved to Campbeltown – but they were sure knowing what they were doing over there in the Bay Area. Must have been epic times back then, because I doubt many Californian connoisseurs had heard about Mortlach at the time. Yeah, same everywhere. So, the whisky’s just great, if not totally magical. Great fatness. Finish: only medium, but everything’s more than fine. Apples, wax, malt, lemons, soot, liquorice… Perhaps a salty touch in the aftertaste. Comments: in a way, it was a light fat one. Funny feeling. Quality was extremely high anyway. SGP:452 - 90 points.
Distillery | Mortlach |
Classification | Single Malt Whisky |
Bottle No./Released | -/- |
Vintage | 1971 |
Age | 15 |
Bottler | R.W. Duthie & Co. |
Bottling Date | 1986 |
ABV/ Volume | 43.0%/ 75cl |
Rating/SGP | 90/452 |
Cask Number | - |
Type: Speyside - Diageo