These Duncan Taylor samples I've tried - here, here and here, all purchased from the same place - have been a bit hit and (a lot) miss. I guess there's a reason why these bottles are still kicking around on the other side of the world four or five years after release.
Mortlach 1989, 22 Year Old, Duncan Taylor Rare Auld, 54.1%
Nose: It seems a little biscuity at first, but this soon evolves into a kind of nutty, woody note. This is quickly followed by some sweetish citrus (clementine?), apples, licorice and faint spices. The addition of water shows us a little more of that orange citrus.
Palate: Quite rough initially. Hot, prickly and vaguely plasticky. Lots of wood here too. Is there any fruit here? Some apple perhaps. Water calms things down a little here and relieves us of that plastic note, replacing it with something more floral (and slightly less offensive) and lavender-like.
Finish: The wood continues as, thankfully, some of the heat burns off. Something green and herbal rises in the upper palate, as the spices continue to do their puckering work. Water forces some of the spice back and, as with the palate, leaves a floral, perfume-y impression.
No, no thanks.
The nose is OK, and the finish acceptable, but the palate is awful. Coming so soon after trying this really good (and super value) young Mortlach (which, incidentally, I had a nip of to calibrate my palate before trying this one), this was supremely underwhelming.
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