Side by side : Morris from Australia

Morris Whisky Distillery from Australia anyone? No I'd never heard of them either!. I first tried their whisky at the Kendal Whisky Festival in December '22

Established in 1859, in the small town of Rutherglen in the north-east of Victoria, the Morris family winery is one of the most acclaimed fortified producers in the world. Craftsmanship in blending, ageing and creating world-class fortified wine has been passed down through six generations of the family, today led by head wine maker David Morris.

The horse logo comes from the horse Fairfield, a champion steeplechaser, who the family sold to plant their first vineyard. The Morris Winery was taken over by Casella Family Brands (of Yellowtail fame) in 2016.

In 2016, the distillery was built around an original copper still, a hybrid pot column, built in the 1930’s and installed at the Morris winery in 1941, it's used to make spirit using local grain mashed at a local brewery. The spirit is then matured in barrels sourced from the family winery.

At Kendal Whisky Festival I was able to try the Signature and Muscat Barrels whiskies, I was also able to get samples for a more in-depth review.

Let's see what they are like!

Dram	Signature	Muscat Barrel
Characteristics	40% ABV Natural colour, chill filtered. Primary maturation in combination French & American oak ex wine casks, followed by finishing in a combination of younger Morris fortified barrels.	46% ABV Natural colour, NCF. French & American oak ex wine casks, followed by finishing in older Morris Muscat barrels.
Distillery notes	The Signature expression shows bright topaz hues on appearance which open a door to orchard fruit profiles, macerated black cherry and biscuit notes balancing the zest of marmalade jam, lingering cocoa and dark-berry flavours. Nose: Orchard fruit profiles, macerated black cherry and biscuit notes. Palate: Extremely well rounded with a pleasant mouth feel. Zesty marmalade jam, lingering cocoa and dark-berry flavours. Finish: Prize winning ex fortified barrels impart an unrivalled finish of dried fruit intensity, delivering a seamless rich depth of character that lingers long on the palate.	Creamy mouthfeel packed full of rich dark fruits and sweet malt notes, which give way to sweet vanilla and cocoa interspersed with cinnamon spice. Primary maturation in combination French & American oak ex wine casks, followed by an extended maturation in Morris multi award winning ex fortified Muscat barrels. Nose: Rich with dates, figs and sweetness of dark molasses. Palate: Well balanced and complex. Dried fig, sweet malt, vanilla and spices with creamy mouth feel. Finish: Superb oak influence, lovely finish with satisfying after taste that lingers on the palate.
My thoughts:
Appearance
	Mid gold in the glass, swirls cling as a thick line, bead up slowly and fall as slow thick legs.	Dark gold in the glass, swirls cling as a thick line, bead up slowly and fall as slow thick legs.
Nose	Dunnage notes to start with some meaty hints. There's a little berry fruit and some orchard fruit hints.	Quite closed on the nose, a little time and air offers brown sugar, dark fruits and some tropical fruit.
Palate	Surprisingly thick arrival, much more than you'd expect from 40% ABV. Sweet berry notes: strawberries, blackberries, blackcurrants; black cherries with honey, toffee and some citrus hints. There's some port, dark chocolate hints, orange marmalade and shortbread biscuit notes.	Thick sweet creamy arrival, dates, plums, figs, and prunes to start. Brown sugar, honey and Christmas spices follow. The fig notes are really strong - like figgy pudding with vanilla custard. Some dry peach and red berry jam hints here too. A gentle cinnamon spice as the liquid disappears.
Finish	Short sweet and fruity with port hints a little peppery spice.	Lingering fig sweetness, berries and dry cinnamon spice.
Overall	A surprising couple of drams, you wouldn't think the Signature is 40% chill filtered - the mouth feel is really good, but when you try the Muscat you get the real thick cream mouthfeel which shows that the Signature must be. There are similar berry and dark fruit notes from both drams, the Signature is obviously made for a price point: reducing the ABV. The Muscat seems like the same dram at 46% and NCF. As I said I got to try these at the Kendal 2022 Festival and I'd had a few by then. The rep from Mangrove allowed me to take a couple of samples from this review and to be honest I'm glad he did - these are both good drams, I'd buy the Muscat over the Signature.