Signatory Vintage Mortlach 2010 11 Year Old

This is a cask strength ‘ode to the Sherry-cask’…From the masters of the single cask, Signatory Vintage, we’re proud to present this 11-year-old sherry-bomb, The Signatory Vintage Mortlach 2010 Aged 11 Years.

This is a limited edition whisky with only 705 individually numbered bottles worldwide. This single malt whisky was distilled in 2010 at the Mortlach Distillery before being placed in a refill Hogshead. It was then finished in a fresh Sherry Butt for 15 months and in 2021 it was bottled at 57.8% ABV as part of the Signatory Vintage Cask Strength Collection.

Mortlach’s bold flavour profile has seen it dubbed “The Beast of Dufftown” and is said to exist somewhere in between mellow and smoky. In a region renowned for its mellower, gentler ‘whisky-vibe’, Mortlach stands out for it’s robust, muscular and rich character.

Mortlach’s celebrated ‘rich and robust’ nature is the result of two factors. First is the unique ‘2.81x’ distillation method and the second is the ‘worm-tub’ condensers used in the production.

The ‘2.81x’ distillation is the result of clever utilisation of the 6 stills (3 wash and 3 spirit stills). It’s a difficult to explain concept in words – but makes much more sense when shown in a diagram.

The basic gist of the process is some spirit is effectively 3 times distilled, and some is 2 times distilled. The combination of these in specific amounts creates a (mathematical) 2.81x distillation figure. This ‘2.81 distillation’ is also paired with a ‘worm tub’ condenser. The relevance of the worm tub is that it contains less copper for the new make to interact with. And the new-make/copper interaction removes heavy, sulphuric compounds. Less copper in the ‘worm tubs’ means less of this interaction, thus more of these flavour compounds. These notes are what give the Mortlach spirit it’s ‘bigger, meatier than your usual Speyside whisky’ character.

Nose: Rich, fruity and lush from the get-go. Dried fruits abound, but a deeper savoury quality lurks in the background.

Palate: Big fruity sherry flavours galore here. If you’re missing Christmas cake already, then you’ll love this! All the fruitcake spices, rich red fruits, chocolate and coffee notes you’re craving!

Finish:  Lovely and lush, chewy and long. Those fruity notes keep going on the back of the peppery waves and the lovely oiliness keeps that finish all over the mouth.

Most definitely the sherry ‘yan’ to our Malt of the Month’s bourbon ‘Ying’. All the red-fruits, fruit cake, coffee and chocolate you could ask for in a big sherry-d whisky. The rich base spirit really carries those sherry influences well!

Cask Number(s): 10
Date of Distilling: 08/02/2010
Date of Bottling: 16/04/2021
Matured In: Refill Hogshead then Finished in a Fresh Sherry Butt for 15 months.

Tasting Notes

Nose: Sultanas and raisins combine with dried dark peels to deliver a big bold fruity aroma, hints of black tea and toasted nuts.
Palate: Bold dark fruits combine with rich chocolate notes complimented by Christmas cake spices.
Finish: Sticky date pudding, melted dark chocolate and some big bold meaty oils.

About Signatory Vintage

Signatory Vintage are an independent bottler founded in 1988 by Andrew and Brian Symington. The name ‘Signatory’ was derived from the initial intention to find a person of suitable standing to sign the labels for bottles drawn from a single cask. The first cask bottled was a 1968 Glenlivet which quickly sold through long before any suitable signee could be found.

Signatory currently bottle at three strengths: 43%, 46% Un-chill-filtered (UCF) and Cask Strength. To add proof of authenticity to their cask strength bottlings, Signatory always include the cask numbers, date of distillation, date of bottling and number of bottles produced. Signatory Vintage’s aim is to offer as wide a range of whiskies as possible, some of which are not even bottled by the proprietary distillery. This allows malt enthusiast to sample the huge variety of subtle differences that occur between casks.

Mortlach was established in 1823 in the wake of the Excise Act. Built on the site of an older illicit distillery Mortlach was the first legal distillery in Dufftown which is the epicentre on Speyside. Now under the ownership on Diageo, it plays a very important role in some of the world’s finest blends. This is due to the oily meaty character it has and the mass production. Known as “The Beast of Dufftown” this character is due to its special distillation process resulting in a spirit which has been distilled 2.81 times.