The "Beast of Dufftown," known for its big and meaty flavours, Mortlach is going to release a 50 Year Old expression distilled all the way back in 1971.

What was happening then? Well, Led Zeppelin played its hit song Stairway to Heaven live for the first time, the NASDAQ stock market is established in New York, Britain decides to stop using the shilling, Mariah Carey was born, and George Harrison gets a driving ban.

But also Mortlach fills single cask number 2893 - well, someone's gotta be doing work right?

This is the two-century-old Mortlach Distillery's oldest single malt bottling ever to be bottled and is part of its high end Singing Stills series. In fact, this release was made with the last spirit to emerge from Mortlach's original direct-fire stills that have been decommissioned since. The spirit is then matured in a single refill American Oak hogshead cask.

The Singing Stills series highlights Mortlach's unwavering promise to "boldly push the boundaries of whisky-making, offering a collection of exceptionally rare single cask expressions". The brand describes this release as an unparalleled example of Mortlach's unique 2.81 distillation process, known as ‘The Way’. During distillation, Morthlach's copper pot stills are said to reverberate with a quaint hum as it unveils fragments of its revered legacy.

“Upon finding the last remaining casks, I was intrigued by the potential impact of an extended maturation process on Mortlach's umami essence. Mortlach 50-Year-Old exceeded all expectations. This is the best example of the distillery’s wild character, tamed by nature over time. An exceptional and fascinating expression and a fitting tribute to Mortlach distillery’s history of doing things in a unique and pioneering way”.

– Master Blender, Dr. Craig Wilson

The limited-edition expression is bottled at 46.3% with only 60 bottles available globally. Each bottle is available at a RRSP of 30,000 USD (excluding duty and taxes). More purchasing details of this bottling are available at www.mortlach.com

Kanpai! 

88 Bamboo Editorial Team