Morris Double Port Barrel
September 2024

Morris Double Port Barrel

Deep. Dark. Delectable… the best from one of Australia’s favourite distilleries, made even better. We worked with Morris to take their chewy, decadent and double-gold-award winning Inaugural Port Barrel and gave it an extra luxurious maturation in hand-selected, prize-winning Grand Tawny Port Barrels.

Australia

Colour Deep amber with intense red ruby hues

Nose Luscious dark red stone fruit – black cherry, blackberry pie with warming spices, and choc-orange.

Palate Vibrant forest fruits and Port-soaked oak give way to flavours of dark fruit and nut chocolate.

Finish The combination of warm baked spices and raspberry-laced malted chocolate taper to a smooth, lingering finish.

Food Match Chocolate dipped strawberries

Overview

Ask a Member about the Inaugural Port Barrel we launched last year, and they’ll tell you how delicious it was. Ask a judge at one of the world’s most prestigious spirits competitions and they’ll tell you the same.

Created exclusively for the Club last year, the Inaugural Port Barrel was an instant favourite. And it scored a whopping 98/100 at the 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

But we were already working with Aussie whisky superstars Morris on the ultimate task: how to make incredible even better.

We asked them to take their chewy, decadent port-matured single malt and give it an extra luxurious maturation in hand-selected, prize-winning Grand Tawny Port Barrels.

Also one of the oldest and most awarded wineries in Australia, Morris is renowned for making world-class fortified wines ­— they’ve taken almost every global accolade out there. So, they have access to a library of exceptional barrels for maturing whisky at their disposal.

“We put our already rich Port-matured spirit back into barrel for over a year,” says Head Distiller Darren Peck. “It’s picked up a freshness and a layered effect of the different Ports… it’s more complex, more luxurious.”

And at a Goldilocks ABV of 48.8%, it’s dripping with the most decedent forest fruits, blackberry pie, dark fruit and nut chocolate, Port-soaked oak and warming spices. This sinfully rich whisky was made for savouring by an open fire, taking in delicate layers of Port richness as they unfurl.

This was only the third limited edition Morris has released. Previous limited editions have retailed for $189. Club Members received Morris Double Port, Created Exclusively for The Whisky Club for just $135 — incredible value for this limited-edition Aussie whisky.

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THE SPECS

Price: $135.00

Age: No Age Statement

ABV: 48.8%

Maturation: Port matured Morris, finished in Grand Tawny Port barrels

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Morris Whisky’s History

North-Eastern Victoria has long been considered Australia’s capital of fortified wine. It all started with the influx of people to the banks of the mighty Murray River in the 1850s for the Gold Rush. Gold mining’s thirsty work, so it didn’t take long for the lush, rolling hills around the town of Rutherglen to be filled with vines, and today there are 17 wineries in the area. One of them, Morris, was started by the eponymous family in 1859, and six generations on it’s in the hands of head wine maker David Morris and is one of the world’s most acclaimed fortified wine producers. 

With a population of just over 2,000, Rutherglen takes its name from a town just outside of Glasgow in Scotland, so it’s only fitting that whisky be made there. Of course, it helps that the climate is perfect for aging whisky, with hot summer days and cool nights helping the casks work their magic. The endless supply of pure, filtered water from the Snowy Mountains is also a bonus. 

In 2016, Morris of Rutherglen set up their own whisky distillery at the winery. While Morris Whisky is one of the newer kids on the block, the distillery is also one that combines over 160 years of tradition, a unique vintage still, ancient fortified casks and some of the most experienced whisky makers in the country to create a truly Australian whisky.

As luck would have it, Morris just happens to have one of the oldest copper stills in the country. Built in the 1930s by Whitehill Limited in Adelaide it was installed where it sits today in 1941. A copper hybrid pot/column still, it was originally used to distil spirit for the fortified wines but had sat dormant for decades. In 2016, the still was reawakened and modified for whisky production. Following the restoration, it was named Aurora, after the princess in Sleeping Beauty.

Aurora has recently been joined by a sister still, also made in the 1930s and almost an identical twin, just a quarter inch or so smaller in diameter. Found languishing in a sister winery that Morris owns, it’s been given the love it needed and aptly been named Ella, after Cinderella.

A pair of Scottish industry legends were brought in to oversee the construction of the distillery, along with Aurora’s recommissioning; the late Dr Jim Swan, known as the ‘Einstein of Whisky’, and John McDougall whose CV shows 25 years’ experience at distilleries like Balvenie, Laphroaig and Springbank. Head Distiller is Darren Peck, possibly the most experienced person in the international drinks industry in terms of category and geography. He’s done it all, having made liquor on every continent except Antarctica.

The still’s filled with wash made in a family-owned brewery from a blend of 100% Australian malted Westminster and Gairdner barley, which is distilled to 78% before being filled into both French and American oak wine barrels, sourced from Morris family-owned wineries in South Australia’s Barossa and Coonawarra regions, and prepared to their own spec at the in-house cooperage. 

The stars of the show of course are the incredible fortified wine barrels in the Morris of Rutherglen portfolio, many of which have held some of the world’s most highly awarded fortified wines for decades. 

With Australian whisky fast becoming popular amongst whisky drinkers, Morris is now in contention to be one of the best Single Malts produced in the country, with dedicated focus and a delicious spirit backbone that’s further enhanced by the exquisite barrels they have access to from their winery. 

Morris Double Port Barrel Morris Double Port Barrel

Distillery Facts

Region: Victoria

Origin: 154 Mia Mia Rd, Rutherglen VIC 3685

Founded: 2016

Water Source: Snowy Mountains

Stills: 2 (1 wash, 1 spirit)

Ready to enjoy a world-class whisky collection?

Your free Club Membership gives access to exclusive single malt from Scotland, Australia and the world’s best distilleries. Enjoy the unrivalled buying power of Australia's biggest whisky club.

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