Mortlach 1990-2017, Old Chieftain’s, 27 yrs, #5186, 51.2%, WB130774

The distillery with the Klingon name! Every time I hold a Mortlach, I get goosebumps. I must say, this bottle has enough power to challenge a Chech'tluth. Information about this bottle is scarce and murky. I asked the Ian Macleod team about it. Here is their answer:

This bottling is cask strength, bottled at its natural strength of 51.2% ABV without dilution. Regarding the cask, based on the tasting notes, it was most likely a sherry butt, although we don’t have definitive information to confirm this.

Nose: Thick, syrupy and sweet with burnt caramel and a slight tingle. There are also red apples and refreshing herbs such as mint or eucalyptus.

Palate: Strong, concentrated espresso – is that what they call a ristretto? Of course, it's very sweet. Dates, sugar beet syrup and other kinds of syrup from various sweetening plants. There are aromas of sugar cane and muscovado sugar, as well as rum and a lot of leather and tobacco.

Finish: Eternally long and bitter-sweet, but not in a bad way. It elevates my perceptions and makes me start to ponder it mindfully. There is no honour in ignoring this one. Qapla', DaH jImej, maghomqa'jaj.

92/91/91