Mortlach 16-year-old

well made sherry-whisky but not good for me

Aroma - unexpected green notes appear, green apples with sourness, tartness of young apples. The taste is warm, floral honey, dense and juicy on the throat, berries appear, a slight bite of pepper, and a neat, non-straining medicine.

This is my first Mortlach. It has a strong character. A good scotch, sherry fruity, taste of meat, hint of smoke, not as oily as expected. It’s quite nice at the beginning, quite enjoyable. Some bitterness at the finish which doesn’t match with its character of meaty and malty.

Tasting notes for the first batch with bottle code L8283DM002.

Nice and pleasant whisky, pretty full of taste for such a lower Abv.

Delicious, grown-up, elegant. (The 16er flora & fauna is unfortunately too long ago for reliable memory comparisons, but at least I think it would have been stronger, rougher.) I would find 50 € appropriate here, 60 borderline, the usual 70+ are clearly too much for me.

Mortlach 16, What about you, you are very classy, very elegant. You have kept this premium silhouette of the past years when you got lost in an inconsiderately expensive range, favoring the look over the quality. These years seem so far behind you, and that's good. In terms of content, I unfortunately read about you that the first batches were clearly superior to those of today, so I don't regret having bought you when you came out. As far as I'm concerned, you are certainly interesting but far from the expectations I had for you. I think to keep you warm in my collection ...

Honey, malt, pear, tobacco, caramel, citric, a bit maritime. Not quite balanced, slightly watery, monotonous, medium body, medium intensity, slightly astringent.

Creamy and fruity after apricot and grapes on the nose, reminiscent of a cognac. Behind it some blackberry. Somewhat undifferentiated in the mouth but not boring. In the finish, a good portion of oak, which covers fine fruit notes. Length: 4/10 The nose is still the most interesting, but then unfortunately it lacks expressiveness and independence. Others in this price range offer significantly more recognition value. Grade: 2

OB Mortlach set a high market position for itself. The bottles from Mortlach always have a higher price than other distilleries OB bottles with similar age. Get back to the Mortlach 16, it's kinda simple to be honest. I don't see any "beast/animal" flavours people used to say from this dram. Might be a easy whisky for beginners, but I would ask for more. 83.

Plum, cherry, chocolate, leather in the finish, spices, quite intense.

Mortlach surprises with a whisky that has coloring, cold filtration, and low ABV, but against expectations manages to deliver potency, density, and flavor. It presents meaty, saline notes that remind me of picanha juice with coarse salt.

Aromatically tart and pleasantly acidic, with plentiful yet perfectly balanced wood influence. Elegant and restrained and flawless to boot, but certainly no „beast“. The Mortlach funkiness remains very much in the background, but can be coaxed out with time and a drop of water. While its‘s too diluted in the manner of many a mass-market bottling to warrant a higher score, it‘s certainly an unboring easy sipper. The aromatic oak reminds me of Nikka from the Barrel, while its softness (and thinness) feels like Aberlour 18, but this has a zesty-sour edge that differentiates it from other Speysiders. Really well-composed, but frustratingly, it‘s just a bit too thin.

Raisins, coffee, honey, blackberries, grapefruit, toffee, hazelnuts, chocolate, orange marmalade, hint of tobacco, ginger and winegums.

Since the Facefilft has also unfortunately changed a lot in Morlach. Valuable bottle, questionable content. I'm a big fan of Mortlach, Linkwood and Longmorn, especially the G & M bottlings. What is currently on the market is PLV moderately very scary, especially in Mortlach .... consider the current Diageo Special Releases .....

Mortlach 16yo (official bottling), 43.4%. 30ml at home, Sep 2021. A dull orange or light shade of amber. Aroma is orangey, fairly fresh and zingy, blood orange and orange flavouring. More 'orange flavoured sweets' than actual oranges. Orange gummy sweets. How many times did I just say 'orange'? I lost track, but that's a dominant vibe so I stand by it. Taste is gentle with you up front, some more orangey vibes, it will just sit there innocently for as long as you let it, but becoming salty late on, just before the swallow, and some ethanol comes through towards the finish - quite surprising after the tame start - and it actually becomes quite warming for the low abv. The profile sits somewhere between a (low rye) rye whisky and a sherried Scotch on the palate. Slightly resinous and spicy, yet fruity and oaky, gummy sweets. Quite good overall. Packs a surprising punch on the finish at only 43%. Nice stuff. 3.5/84

full and soft Morty, easy going, misses a bit that old school fatty Mortlach profile.

Still a very intense nose, on wood and smoked meat, but also softer, sweeter. More body and thickness, too. Still good marmalade, quince this time. It's thicker, more candied. Very ripe greengages. The palate is both smooth and robust, very well made, red meat and blood oranges. Duck with orange, with some spices, cloves, cumin, saffron. The finish is quite long, powerful just the right amount, woody, on fig. Loose earth, humus, small mossy plants. We can only recognize the work well done, the balance, the mastery of the different flavors. https://ilikesky2020.blogspot.com/2021/11/mortlach-16-yo-distillers-dram.html

finally.. i don’t like it. with the exception of one herbal, fresh, bowmore-y note on the palate.. the rest of the experience is not convincing.. there’s too much of everything.. too much colour, too much orange.. too much sweet.. and to much empty-bitter in the finish.. however, that single note is intriguing and i will be looking out for it.

Light, fruity, very easy drinkable

Notes fro whiskynotes: Mortlach 16 yo ‘Distiller’s Dram’ (43,4%, OB 2018) Nose: intense but elegant sherry, totally fresh. Full of tarte tatin with cinnamon, berries, dried apricots and cherry candy. Toffee, a hint of marzipan and honey. Candied ginger. There’s also a light earthy side and tobacco. Whiffs of polished oak. Really good. Mouth: robust and more spicy, not extremely intense given the ABV but not weak either. Figs and raisins, hints of peaches on syrup, orange liqueur and baked apple. Then pepper, cinnamon and musty leather. A little wood char. Chocolate and mint. Gingerbread. Finish: medium, on marmalade and honey, nutmeg and brown sugar. Really rich and aromatic, with a fresh sherry influence and an attractive price. Robust but hardly any meaty notes. Mortlach is on our radar again: recommended. Available from The Whisky Exchange or Master of Malt for instance. Score: 89/100 Update June 2019: I’ve been informed that the newer batch of this Mortlach (bottling code L9016DM001) is disappointingly different (confirmed on Whiskybase). It is a well-known strategy to come out with a perfect recipe and then follow up with compositions that are far less impressive. Sadly in this case there is no obvious batch mention on the label, so you’ll have to watch carefully for an etched code on the glass.

Pleasant, but a bit thin

Odor: fruity, slim, clear fruit, sweetish basic tone, orange zest, mandarin, nice balance, alcohol very well integrated, medium complexity, Taste: German spicy wood, according to peppery, alcohol German more present than on the nose, cinnamon, forest honey, medium. according to drying out reverberation, again with German. wood spice Color: Ocher tone with a reddish tint in the middle. Water's edge, sure Conclusion: Unfortunately it seems dtl. Batch variations - unfortunately it is not possible to determine which batch my sample was filled from. In this edition, however, it is clearly a "nose whisky", on the palate it would probably have less wood influence...

Reasonably complex whisky. Not quite my style, but definitely recommended.

Such a step forward from the 12yo and 14yo. We can rave a lot about low abv, chill filtering and E150A added, but this is a very good whisky though. A full bottle would be welcome in my cabinet.

Nose-85; Taste-85; Finish-85.

Darjeeling This 16 Year Old – dubbed the Distiller’s Dram – should make us forget the 16 years old from the Flora & Fauna series. That will not be easy, as that was a top dram. This new one is likewise matured on sherry casks, but has a slightly higher ABV. The nose is round and elegant, almost feminine. Softer than the 12 Year Old with much more sweetness. The sherry casks have done a good job. Overripe banana, orange marmalade, toffee and toffee apples, but also apricots, plums and sultanas. Some earthy and wood glue, but in the good sense. Refined and complex. Succulent! Dark and sweet on sultanas, dried apricots, juicy cherries, blood oranges and plums upholstered with some cloves and cinnamon. Then I get some hazelnuts and a bitterness as if from Darjeeling tea that has been left unattended. You can almost chew this one. Very good! The finish is long, dark and sweet with some drying tannins at the death. Refined. Elegant. Feminine. Wonderful. Complex yet dangerously quaffable. Offer this at cask strength and it will truly be The Wild Child of Speyside.

Juicy and oily. Very good sherried whisky, not a bomb but rather elegant and light that still remain some power. Clean yet complex. Very enjoyable

Apples Booooring

Mature, strong dram. Tasty standard.

kinda flat......

Fajn whisky. Měj jsem láhev a teď po čase jsem se dostal ke vzorku. Oproti 12 yo už více komplexní, dospělejší whisky. Dobře se pije. Dřevo, kůže, med, lehce koření. Povedená věc, rád bych si ji někdy srovnal z 16yo Fauna Flora.

Buy again? Yes Recommend? Yes Drink if offerd? Yes Nice whisky, good for my preference

Not a particularly strong whisky, but a pleasantly spicy-sweet one, which is somewhat disappointing in the finish.

[November, 2018] The 16-years old Mortlach of the Flora & Fauna series is (probably) the most legendary Mortlach release because of its perfect combo of massive sherry and bold malt flavours - a real stunner in the Traditional Scotch style (and I guess many casks were paxarette improved, what is absolutely fine with me). But then Diageo cancelled this release and tried to re-position Mortlach as a premium malt with super-premium prices (and 0.5 litre bottles only). The quality of these "high-end" bottlings was rather chequered and luckily the consumers refused the join in that game (what is not usual during these crazy whisky boom times). Guess what? Diageo reacted and re-positioned Mortlach with the new 12, 16 and 20-years old releases in the middle of the market (again) what is absolutely okay. Hey, consumers still have power in the whisky world - a triple hooray and a big Mortlach dram on that, slainte! This new Mortlach 16-years old is completely different from the old Flora & Fauna edition (less sherry-driven) but it is a very Traditional Scotch style dram that is flawless (no sulphur-spoiled cask in this batch what is a great achievement for Mortlach that is infamous for many sulphurous drams), it is perfectly balanced and dangerously quaffable. To be honest, I fell in love with this dram from the very first sip on and this did not change until now (when half of the bottle is gone already). It is neither the most complex nor the most impressive whisky but it is what whisky should be: Easy to sip, delicious and very, very enjoyable... PS: Always remember there are many different batches of such standard drams - my review is on batch L8283DM002 (bottling hall code on the bottom of the back side of the bottle) that was bottled on October 10th, 2018. Later releases might be quite different (see my review on batch L9016 WB id 130617)...

The 12-year release is more signature. In this version, oak and sherry casks begin to pull the blanket over themselves. The sulphurousness and minerality of Mortlach, beloved by my heart, is washed away. N:22 T:22 F:21 B:20

First a nose full of gummy bears. The taste is slightly woody, but without much vanilla. The finish is amazingly sharp for 43.4% ABV. A bit disappointing for a 16 year old.

Moderately heavy aroma of yellow apple honey. 84 Soft, tart plum apricot. 85 Orange Peel Almond Calm A Little Saponin? 86

Likely contains a high proportion of refill sherry butts. Overall, super mild in character.

scent: soft, smooth, dried fruit, soap Taste: mild, flatter, dried fruit For a 16yo, that's a bit of average drinking for me. For a 16yo, that's a bit of average drinking for me.

Very aromatic. Lots of sherry, ripe and gentle. Fantastic.

Very well balanced, sherry-matured whisky. Not a sherry bomb, but a malt, in which one always discovers new facets.

The Beast of Dufftown in its new cloak - boy, that rebranding was so desperately needed. To hell with Mortlach's ultra-premium deluxe image! On the nose, blood oranges, cloves and heather jump at you. Raspberries, sage and honey follow shortly after, and there is an earthy note creeping in. Full-bodied and intense, the palate guides you through the flavor wheel: fruity, bitter and sour, then slightly dry, sweet and savory. Tangerine, peppermint and a touch of stout escort the long and cask-dominated finish. A great comeback of a characterful Speysider. RATING: 4.0/5.0 stars ≙ 88 pts → FIRST-CLASS

Fruity, Peach,

pleasant drop that would benefit for my taste from 46-48%. As it is bottled he is too thin for me and therefore much too expensive

Color: Chestnut / Oloroso sherry The cheap-looking burnt-on note of the 12yo is gone, and I have to admit, the massive wood insert fits surprisingly well to the clearly existing Mortlach character. I am not very enthusiastic, it lacks some intensity and "directness" - but I like it better than last time - 87 points with a tendency to 88. Oh, sherry is clearly present and sulfur in my estimation not.

I knew it before, I will not get warm with Mortlach. When I took the first dram, I thought, okay, slight bourbon cask flavor. But when I took a closer look I read Sherry Cask. After that I searched for the Sherry Cask. Honestly, even though I'm preloaded with Mortlach, for the course I get really nice first fill Bourbon Cask, which are really good. Therefore from my side only 78 points. Hardly nosing, barely on the palate and very short in the finish. Who likes it, like. But the PLV does not fit.

Very successful sherry whisky. Also worth the price if you can get it for a little over 60 euros.

This is a decent dram. Quite friendly and good touch of sherry. Bought this at the Dutch flagshipstore 'Woudenberg' and got a free sample of the 20yo!

The much more layered and complex taste overwhelms the indistinct aroma. I did this evaluation for a bottle that has been open for about 2 years. And in truth, the impressions are significantly better than during the first few months after opening. In terms of experience and impressions, Mortlach 16yo is roughly on the same level as my other favorite from the Diageo stable, the Clynelish 14yo. Therefore, the same points. Although, I would rate Clynelish half a point higher if I could.

Mortlach 16 YO Distiller's Dram Category: Single Malt Manufacturer and bottler: Mortlach Distillery (Diageo) Region: Speyside Fortress: 43.4% Volume: 700 ml Bottling date: 04/16/2019 Barrel type: ex-sherry Min. age: 16 years old Filtration: present Dye: yes Nose. Despite the fact that, unlike the 12-year-old version, the whisky is aged exclusively in sherry casks, in aromatics it generally repeats the profile of its predecessor, only becoming thicker and more concentrated. It is even sweeter, fruitier and spicier, with a noticeable influence of woody tones. Dark berries (blueberries, blackberries) and baked orange, wax tones, plum jam, dried apricots are added to dark honey, brown raisins, toffee, chocolate, hazelnuts, vanilla and ginger. Sulphurous tones that give Mortlach releases a "meaty" character have not gone away, but seem to have only intensified. On the palate, density, sweetness and spiciness are also higher than 12 by one order. The sherry casks have done a good job here. Beeswax, brown cane sugar, raisins, dried apricots, dark berries, citrus fruits, plums, cherries, pastries, hazelnuts are combined into a single flavor ensemble with tobacco leaves, dusty earthy motifs, ginger and cloves. Aftertaste. Continuous. Dryish. Dark berries, hazelnuts, dustiness. Summary. This release is a slight qualitative improvement over The Wee Witchie. Despite aging exclusively in sherry casks, Mortlach did not turn into the usual “sherry bomb”, but continued to bend the line of its predecessor. The classic complex fruity Speyside whisky with its specific “meaty” character has become a little denser and a little tastier. Rating: 86 out of 100.

Very tasty Mortlach. Very fruity in profile. Very complex. But this malt needs a lot of time to open up. If you give it time, you get a great, complex whisky. Very tasty.

The Deadly Ok

It is indeed a refreshing sherry bucket drink with a low alcohol content. It is in good condition for a short time after opening (87), but its condition drops significantly after two months (85), which may be related to the slightly loose stopper. However, as a mid-range Core Range product, you can't taste the "beast" or the meat flavor. Notes date: 20220708 Rating reference price: CNY480

Divisive. Good quality flavors, but it's a little thin and don't punch me.

bright, memorable whisky, saturated with sherry notes, with a twist. Super!

My first Mortlach but probably not the last. Nice lighter tasty malt. He likes the nose. After that he builds up a bit. He needed more steam. Still very tasty.

At first nosing I find a certain dusty note. (Did I clean the glass?) Confectionary sweetness, not unlike big brand rums. Unfortunately, the dusty/sweet combo soon veers in the direction of wet cardboard. Pineapple, and blackened bananas. The taste is thin, but it is just spicy enough to engage. Hold that, it's really spicy. Burnt caramel. With water more honey on the nose, and more oak on the palate. The peppery notes subside for sweetness. Very floral, and grassy, sweeter still. Whatever there is for a finish is very meagre, monotonously bitter, and then just cardboardy again. It's not really a beast, is it? Not sure what it is in fact, aside from rather generic. This one is lost on me. Maybe 80 is too kind.

Comparison Mortlach 16yo and Mortlach 20yo First contact: In the taste of 16yo feel alcohol and caramel. The smell of caramel clearly blends with milk chocolate. 20yo, on the other hand, instantly jumped fruitiness that I enjoy. The aroma is manifested by strawberries and some subtlety. Ha, this will be a more interesting duel than I originally thought. The second, more in-depth investigation: 16yo brings hazelnut, Linen dough, dried lemon zest and peanuts in sugar. In the scent through caramelity and sometimes even brutal cane sugar, some greenery flashes, and sometimes orange or raisins. 20yo is clearly more fruity in taste. Strawberries, apricots, dried apricots, pears and clear woody finish, but also good quality straw wine. In the fragrance of a variety of candies and sweets, vanilla rolls, partly even awe (walnuts mixed with icing sugar) or vanilla sugar. Close Encounters of the Third Kind, or Let's Try What a Water Drop Will Do: 16yo goes lightly into dark chocolate and chocolate pudding. The fragrance is fragrant and unripe walnut, along with nail polish. Cane sugar persists. 20yo lightly, pleasantly bitter. Immature grape, vineyard peach, candy and sap. The smell surprisingly appears musty, but also rye bread and nuts.

Amber color. Oily.

Nose Gingersnap, orange peel, blackcurrant pie, stewed apple､ Taste oily walnut, meaty, raisin, Brown sugar syrup, orange marmalade, leather, touch of baked earth

WDC 2026

I think, a completely successful whisky from Mortlach, pleasant smell, spicy, but sweet taste with short, sweet finish, very tasty. Succeeded ....

Ralfy review 778: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTWPR6_sgmI (88/100).

Compared to the 12er is the already intense and looks more elegant. He shows a little more spices and herbs. But the overall offers for me little exciting.

Reviewing a bottle with bottle code L8283DM002: one word: thin. Sadly... I was looking forward so much to this bottle but "thin" describes it best. If you want a more positive word you could say "gentle" or "subtle". But for me it's just thin in every aspect. Probably not a bad malt, just not my taste. Maybe I was hyped too much. It's probably good if you like very gentle and elegant whiskies. If you like your whisky with edges and character then stay away. After trying more then 100 different Single Malt Whiskies I sadly have to put this to the disappointing ones.

Intense and well balance but this Mortlach 16 is a bit too sweet for me. The sweetness overlap the other flavour like herb, spice that i could easily get in 12 yrs. Maybe it is a newly open btl need some time to open up.

Tasted on 10-06-2021.

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Elegant sherry malt. Distillery character is still recognizable, the alcohol is well integrated. Blindly I would have judged him younger.

20 20 20 20 80

best single malt of 2019 I have been able to try.The products details on site says its an ex sherry cask totally wrong its a 100% sherry cask with a distillation process that almost goes for a triple distillation but a the third distillation it's stopped almost at the finishing,the bottle labels has this 2.81 which is almost a triple distillation process that gives a very smooth character Taste profile,very rich and fruity orchard fruit,grapes to the nose amazing for those who love drinking whisky during summer as well this is the one.

Good dram, enjoyed it but would have liked something more on the spicy end of the sherry

Spicy and a lot of herbs

N- Sweet maltose and pickled ginger heats warming up for more spices to shows, as well the molasses, demarara sugar that are quite rum-y. Creamy vanilla profiteroles with pinch of crushed leafy herbs. (87/21) P- Chocolate coated mixed fruit sweetness overcast, hint of leather, hint of honey and hint of phenol, all in gentle manner for rounded and quite profound mouthfeel. (88/22) F- Long, echoing with juicy oak rising, christmas chocolate cookies, after burn furnace with lovely tingling sensation on the tongue, ginger flavour popping candy. (91/22) B/B- 88/22 Another one that perfect to follow up with sip of pipping hot coffee... Weighted Rate- 87pt Cr-3, Fr-2, Fl-2, Pt-0, Ft-2, Sp-0, Wd-3, Wn-3, Sc-1 — at The Whisky Bar, Kuala Lumpur.

very classic, well done

Pleasant and enjoyable, but somehow I just expect Mortlach to be a bit more angular and difficult than these new OBs have turned out to be. I tasted this with a full compliment of Mortlachs ( OBs Rare Old, 12, 14, 15 GoT, 16, 18, 20, and the 2019 G&M 25), and if there is something to be said for the whole OB line, the 43,4% bottling strength is too low because it kills the finishes.

Delicious! A standard that you can drink well at any time. Sweet but also dry. Nice oily, buttery mouthfeel. Tart, sherry notes and a very slightly peppery finish.

I don't know why some colleagues here with 89 points turn the wheel - but the balance of wood, spice and fruit is very nice. Drinkable!

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Green apples with the sourness or even tartness of young apples. The sip is warm, floral honey, thick and juicy on the throat, berries appear, a slight prickle of pepper, and careful medicine, not straining.

S 6 Quite unbalanced - Sherry influence overwhelmed the distillate character but not rich enough to let me not care where the distillate is from.

Very nice stuff! Full almost heavy body, mouthcoating, feels good. Sherry is there allright, nice and balanced, not overpowering. Has an elegant undertone of mint coming through, mixes nicely with the sherry sweetness. We've (finally) got an affordable and seriously good malt from Mortlach again. One to saviour.

Great Malt, harmonious, balanced, nice thing

What a crying shame. 43.4% is odd. Chill filtered and full of caramel is sad. Is this really the beast of Dufftown. It is expensive and the best to be said about it is that it inoffensive. Very disappointing.

Pear, apple, vanilla, orange, honey, nice