Wemyss Malts Pastille Bouquet 1998 Mortlach

Wemyss Malts Pastille Bouquet 1998 Mortlach
Picture: The Whisky Exchange

Wemyss Malts bottles its single cask range usually at 46% instead of cask strength. But the whiskies kept their natural colour and are non-chill-filtered. The name reflects the prominent flavours of the whisky. This 1998 Mortlach is described as 'This Hogshead has floral potpourri on the nose, with sugar-coated fruit pastilles'.

So we are talking about 14 - 15-year-old Mortlach from an ex-bourbon hogshead with flavours of sweet fruit candies with a sugar coat.

Identity Card Wemyss Malts Pastille Bouquet 1998 Mortlach

  • Independent bottling from Mortlach Distillery (Speyside)
  • Bottled Wemyss Malts
  • 1998 Vintage
  • Alcohol 46% ABV
  • Non-chill-filtered & Natural colour

Dusty candy box hidden in the kitchen

Tasting Notes

Colour: Citrus, white wine.

Nose: The start is rather subtle yet sweet. At the first nosing, I got a flashback to Highland Park's Freya. Cake with dried fruits. Figs and citrus. The obvious fruit candy and some red fruit with a hint of potpourri. Apricots, lemon marmalade and almonds.
With water, the whisky sweetens even more. Vanilla and sugared lemon candy. A light floral evolution. Geraniums. Dusty notes towards the end.

Taste: Dry and peppery. I'm getting lots of wood and spice. Cinnamon, apple, vanilla and nutmeg. The usual ex-bourbon suspects: bananas and coconut. A freshly brewed ginger tea.
With water, it is dry, sweet and spicy. Cinnamon and pepper.

Finish: Quite long. Bananas, almond flakes and cinnamon.

Conclusion

A tasty and affordable Mortlach and yet somewhat different from the usual one. Mortlach builds a reputation as a sherry beast but proves to deliver an equally high-quality product when matured in ex-bourbon casks. Its lower ABV makes it easily drinkable.

It costs approximately € 82 in specialist stores.


The sample was offered by Wemyss Malts for a Tweet Tasting organised by The Whisky Wire (#WemysTT3).

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