Mortlach 15-year-old GM

Very good daily dram, a simple but balanced sherry that does what is asked of it very well.

Simple and delicious! A nice summer dram.

A really heavy, dark, fleshy, slightly sulphurous Mortlach for 70 euros, really fine material. Tasting notes Sulphured raisins, leather, dark earth, meat broth, burnt caramel, a mix of blackberry, elderberry and especially blackberry jam. The finish is a really nice dark oak with meat broth, earthy aromas as a support. On the nose, especially slightly sulphurous, jam-like, meaty and leathery. Those who like this style get their money's worth here.

I like the nose on this but the palate lacks enough sweetness for me to find it interesting.

Mortlach 15 Year Old, Distillery Labels, Gordon & MacPhail, SMSW, 46%. 30ml sample at home from MoM, consumed April 2025. Paid way over the odds for this sample - can’t really account for it, other than to say I am going through one last phase of giving a chance to distilleries that other people love but that I generally haven’t got on with. Dark golden orange. Aroma is low to moderate intensity (quite airy) with orange boiled sweets, spiced orange peel, orange-infused white chocolate, and a background hint of rubber. Teresa says marzipan and burnt brown sugar – and now that the glass is back in my hand I can really see that, and the orange has gone. Some sort of sorcery is afoot. Body is watery-plus. Taste is watery up-front, then mid-palate I get a punch of that spiced orange vibe, orange blossom – bordering an acrid perfumey note but always staying in check, slightly meaty leading into a breathy minerally finish. The linger is icing sugar and chalk with a faint hint of pithy orange again. Pretty good. Some nice flavours and good complexity. Not a refined, ‘smooth’ dram for the fireside by any means – it’s a bit prickly. For hip flasks or the right mood (I do think I’d reach past this more often than not). Reminds me a lot of Springbank on the palate, so I could see some people loving it. 3.475/83

Mortlach in its classic form, fleshy and voluminous, dark fruits and nice and warm.

Solid malt, the nose is convincing! Only on the palate do I find it a bit unbalanced at the moment, the wood dominates a bit. The aroma shows a nice sherry influence, then the whole thing turns into a somewhat bitter and spicy experience.

I like that one very much. Has the wooden bits that the 16y Bottling is lacking for me. Nice Sherry influence. Was fearing the 3% increase ("why are they doing that?") but was happy with the new one

https://whiskylovingpianist.wordpress.com/2024/03/27/happy-international-whisky-day-2024/ Gordon & MacPhail’s [official label] 15yo goes right back to the early 1980s as far as I can see. I’ve only ever tried the official GoT 15yo release which was ok [WLP84]. N: A super focused nose that initially talks of fresh crisp sweet melon, banana, and peaches over a soft porridge mash, a dash of chalk. At this early stage we are nearing Lagavulin’s ethereal new make before, that is, the sweet seasoned casks – the nuts and bolts – scupper this unearthly magic. If we focus in on the more tertiary sherry tones and the jammy [slightly] meaty coppery notes, we can chisel some of the long-established and recognised Mortlach characteristics. Indeed, those casks are encouraging a sulphurous funk though am I coaxing what I want to see more than what is actually here? Then again, give it time and the key Mortlach ’soup’ trait argument becomes far more persuasive. Not ‘stocky’ enough you say? I hear ya. All that aside, we’ve a very decent engineered sherried malt at the very least. T: Salivating arrival that talks of an involved cask regime over the rather elemental mix of barley, water, and yeast over copper. Again, we’re talking of a very decent engineered modern creation, one which helps to eek out and promote the Mortlach funk, or at least the illusion of it which has been all too absent/cleaned up in recent times. Though it’s the sherry casks doing most of the work, overall we have us a malty, sherried [even fino I’d wager], slightly sulphurous vegetal experience,… so little to grumble about. F: Clean yet funky and faithful in its form. Plenty of bourbon traits conclude and perhaps with some wines in there too[?],… a hint of ash. C: A convincing contemporary Mortlach, without question, a malt for sherry lovers. This will probably age well, opened or closed. I’ll probably grab a bottle before G&M turns its back on it all. Scores 86[+]

A decent malt. A mixture of mineral and slightly earthy notes with yellow-fruity sherry and citrus fruits. In addition, pleasant seasoning. It's good to drink and it wouldn't be a mistake to try it again. For me, the better alternative to the 16-year-old original bottling.

Quite a nice nutty Mortlach. Well-matured.

Palinka (plum brandy).. An intense, powerful whisky which I believe is the Mortlach way.. On some occasions it was a bit much, on others really rewarding, but either way you could tell that this was a quality bottling!

Nose: Sherry, wet oak, apricot compote, candy mix, prunes Taste: Sweet, pungent, tart, oaky tincture with slight mustiness, possibly sulfur notes, bitter bitterness. Finish: Tart, spicy with a slight bitterness. An excellent basic tag, given the degree of 46, let it be 87.

Tried together with the Longmorn 15y GM, which I liked better on the nose. Both are unspectacular but good whiskys

Really successful, rock-solid 15-year-old sherry malt. No frills, no faults, just fine!

Very complex, but not my favorite sherry

Nose: Dark fruits, rum raisins, some beef bouillon. Dark chocolate, forest floor. Subtle malty sweetness. Mouth: Juicy orange, dried fruits, tangy spicy. Herbs. Finish: Quite spicy, a bit dry. Rather short. 87/100 Conclusion: A nice whisky, a lot of sherry influence, but not overwhelming. Pleasant alcohol strength that is certainly just as helpful for the aroma density.