Drone View of Mortlach Distillery

Mortlach Distillery

The First in Dufftown

Mortlach Distillery was the first legal distillery in Dufftown, Speyside. It was established in 1823 in the wake of the Excise Act, on the site of an older illicit distillery. It was the only distillery in Dufftown until Glenfiddich was founded in 1887 by William Grant (who had previously worked at Mortlach for 20 years – see blog entry about William Grant). There are now 9 active distilleries in this small town. It could be said that Dufftown is the new Whisky Capital of the world.

Over the years, Mortlach has become whisky gold; used mainly in blended whisky and its name as a single malt is not well known outside of the inner circles. And hard to find and buy.

The Early Years of Mortlach

Mortlach Distillery was founded in 1823 by James Findlater, Donald McIntosh and Alexander Gordon. Mortlach is almost as old as Dufftown itself which was established in 1817. There were few roads of any consequence and deliveries in and out of the distillery were usually by pack pony over the rough hill tracks, making trade difficult.

In 1831 the Mortlach distillery was sold to Auther & Thomas Gregory of Buchromb. And in 1837, James and John Grant took over the facility, shut it down, and dismantled it for parts to support their other projects. The business was then suspended until 1851.

In 1851, John Gordon took ownership and brewed beer in the facilities, but then converted it again for the original purpose, the production of whisky. After a 15 year break, it was back again a whisky distillery!

George Cowie and His Workforce

The Cowie Era

In 1853, engineer George Cowie joined John Gordon as joint owner of the distillery. George Cowie was an engineer during the Golden Age of Victorian Engineering. He had a pioneer mind and spirit and soon became a leader in the distilling industry. In 1867 John Gordon died, and George Cowie became the sole owner of the distillery. He was a succesful distiller and businessman.

The Elgin Courant wrote in 1868 that "There is not perhaps a distillery in Scotland that has so many private customers as Mortlach for whisky spirits are sent not only over the three kingdom's to families, but to America, India, China and Australia, in all of whisky Mr Cowie has customers who prefer his distillation to all others".

Mortlach only produced around 50 gallons per week (250 Litres) and it was pretty much all sold direct off the still in 9 or 10 gallon casks to the very few well-to-do local gentry who could afford it. The price was about 9 shillings (45 pence or 50 Euro cents) per gallon duty paid. Small was beautiful.

The Cowie Dynasty

Alexander Mitchell Cowie was born in 1861. He graduated in medicine from the University of Aberdeen before moving to Vienna and then Hong Kong. He returned to Dufftown and took control of the distillery in 1896 after learning that his father had fallen ill.

He immediately started to take the distillery to new heights. In his first year, he doubled capacity. And in 1897, leveraging his scientific mind, Alexander invented the “2.81 distillation process” and deployed it in the distillery. It is still in place today and is unique in the industry. It is said to be responsible for the rich, bold character of Mortlach whisky. This process is a tough one to explain, but in essence the spirit is distilled 2.81 times. Blows your mind, right?

A lot more progress was made during the next 2 years. The distillery was connected to the first railway line to Scotland and the railway siding known as the 'Strathspey line' linked it directly to Dufftown. The railway brought in coal from the South and made transportation of whisky much easier. With the arrival of coal, the distillery also received electrical lighting in 1898. By then, Alexander had become a recognised industry leader and was appointed chairman of the North of Scotland Malt Distiller’s Association.

In 1923, Alexander sold Mortlach distillery to John Walker and Sons. Much of its whisky was used in their blends. Through further mergers, Diageo have become the distilleries current owner.

Mortlach was one of the few Scottish distilleries able to produce continuously during the Second World War, with only a brief exception during 1944.

The Beast of Dufftown

Demand grew and in 1964 the distillery underwent more refurbishment and expansion. Further expansion took place in 1971 when the entire heating system for production was converted to steam. It took until 1992 for the release of Mortlach’s first single malt whisky. Famed whisky writer, David Broom, acclaimed Mortlach as “The Beast of Dufftown” because of its unconventional processes (remember the 2.81 times the spirit is distilled!) and robust flavours created by them. In 2018, a 20 year old single malt was released and critics acclaimed that the Beast of Dufftown had been tamed.

Drinking Mortlach is one thing, but visiting the distillery is something else altogether. A lucky few have been granted access in the past, but not many. About the only way to get inside, is during the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival.

The Whisky

Most of the distillery output still goes into blending – especially into Johnnie Walker. Since 2014, Diageo has repositioned Mortlach as a super-premium brand (with corresponding prices).

Mortlach single malts are typical Speyside whiskies, with a twist. They perfectly combine floral, smoky, malty and fruity flavours to create a whisky of a superior quality. Mortlach is uniquely characterized by an almost meaty, sulphur taste which add another dimension to the otherwise round, sweet and mellow malts of the region. The Flora and Fauna edition from the distillery is one to try, and a number of independent bottlings are also available. The best value bottles come from independent bottler, Signatory.

I have just opened and tried a Mortlach that was distilled in 2007 and bottled in April 2018. One of 649 bottled charged from a sherry finished Butt. Bottled at 10 years old by Hunter Laing and Co. Ltd. It is really well rounded and smooth. And very, very, good!

Nose: Apples, green moss and lemon

Palate: Salted caramel, marzipan, mint and honey

Finish: Long, sweet and spicey.

Mortlach whisky is worth a try and has featured in a couple of my tastings recently. It is possible to get single malt bottlings, but it is not inexpensive.