March 2019 Auction

Ardbeg 1972 Kingsbury 28 Year Old / Hand Writing

This is a fantastic independently bottled Ardbeg, from Japan's Kingsbury.

Kingsbury are Japan's most sought after independent bottler. They were founded in 1989 by Eaglesome, the high-end deli in Campbeltown that was purchased by J & A Mitchell & Co of Springbank distillery, and turned into one of the region's finest whisky merchants. They initially bottled Kingsbury's exclusively for the Japanese market using their Cadenhead's stock, before the label was acquired by native firm, the Japanese Import System. They have released a number of some of the most collectible whiskies, including a Bowmore 1966, and two dark sherry casked Ardbeg.

This is part of a beautifully labelled series called Hand Writing, perhaps an affectionate nod to a similar Samaroli series around 10 years earlier?

Distilled in 1972 and bottled at natural cask strength after 28 years.

Ardbeg 1974 Provenance 4th Release 75cl / US Import

One of the legendary Ardbeg Provenance bottlings, distilled in 1974 and matured for around 25 years before bottling in September 2000.

This is the hard to come by 4th release in the series, and was exclusive to the US and Asian markets.

These whiskies are highly acclaimed and desirable, including certificate and tartan insert.

Bottle number 6086.

Ardbeg 1974 Samaroli 15 Year Old

One of two releases of a 1974 vintage Ardbeg bottled for Silvano Samaroli. At 240 bottles, this is the much rarer of the two.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports in pantheon of whisky greats.

This bottling was bottled for Samaroli in Scotland by R.W. Duthie & Co. in 1990, and is bottle number 97.

Ardbeg 1975 Intertrade 13 Year Old Sherry Wood

A stunning vintage Ardbeg, distilled on 26th June 1975 and bottled at cask strength on 13th July 1988 for Intertrade.

Intertrade was established in Italy in the early 1980s by Nadi Fiori, a contemporary of Silvano Samaroli and Moon Import's Pepi Mongiardino. His company is perhaps less well known than theirs, but bottled some of the most well-regarded and collectible whiskies on the market.

This is one of two cask strength 1975 vintage Arbeg bottled for Fiori. This sherry cask by Gordon & MacPhail, and another from a new oak hogshead.

Bottle number 444 of 543.

Ardbeg 1975 Single Cask #4718

Vintage Ardbeg is a rare find these days and we are lucky to offer this 1975 vintage.

Sing sherry cask #4718 was filled on 26th December 1975 and bottled 20th October 1999

Bottle number 8 of 238.

Ardbeg 1976 Single Cask #2392

Distilled in 1976 and matured for 24 years in a sherry butt #2392.

This bottle was hand-bottled at cask strength by distillery manager Stuart Thomson and is number 526 of 528 bottles.

Ardbeg 1976 Single Cask #2394

A very highly sought after Ardbeg, distilled on 24th November 1976 and bottled on 18th July 2000.

Exclusively bottled by hand for the Ardbeg Committee this single cask sherry butt yielded only 466 bottles, this is bottle number 441.

Signed by Stuart Thomson.

Ardbeg 1974 Single Cask #2740

A Single Cask Ardbeg filled on 14th June 1974 and bottled at cask strength 29 years later, on the 11th August 2003

Cask No.2740, one of 120 bottles.

Ardbeg 1973 Single Cask #1143

Vintage Ardbeg is a rare commodity these days and we are lucky to offer this 1973 vintage single cask.

Distilled on the 16th of March 1973 and bottled on the 22nd of December 2006 from single bourbon hogshead #1143.

Bottle Number 48 of 216.

Ardbeg 1992 Single Cask #2780

A single cask Ardbeg, distilled on 1972 and bottled at over 30 years old on 2004.

Bottle number 160 of 216 drawn from single cask #2781, a bourbon hogshead.

Ardbeg 1975 Single Cask #1378

Vintage Ardbeg is a rare commodity these days and we are lucky to offer this 1975 vintage single cask.

Distilled on the 28th of March 1975 and bottled on the 8th of November 2006 from a single sherry butt #1378.

Bottle Number 10 of 453.

Ardbeg 1963 Sestante 30 Year Old / White Crest

A very, very rare Ardbeg indeed, distilled in 1963 and bottled by the world renowned Italian bottlers, Sestante in 1993.

Released as part of the White Crest label series, which included a number of releases from Ardbeg as well as other distilleries. The range was bottled from the 1980s all the way through to the early 2000s.

The Sestante import company was founded in the 1970s by Ernesto Mainardi, and he bottled his first single casks under the name in 1985. Alongside his contemporary, Silvano Samaroli, Mainardi pioneered giving his customers a choice of both standard 40-46% bottlings, and cask strength releases from the same casks. Along with his other brand, Silver Seal, Mainardi's bottlings are incredibly sought after.

Ardbeg from this period are so hard to come by these days, and it is well worth investigating these older bottlings, even more so when they are from bottlers such as Sestante.

Ardbeg 1976 Samaroli

A very highly sought after Ardbeg, distilled 1976.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports in pantheon of whisky greats.

This bottling was bottled for Samaroli in Scotland by R.W. Duthie & Co. in 1993, and is the final addition to his Ardbge series. Almost unbelievably, Samaroli reportedly had great difficulty selling the first release in this series, the 1974 vintage from 1983. It was not until a few years later that demand for the peaty flavours began to increase in Italy.

This is one of the final bottlings from Samaroli's partnership with R.W. Duthie, who had to stop working with him in the early 1990s due to increasing demand from their other client, Cadenhead's.

Bottle 567 of 1020.

A.H. Hirsch Reserve 1974 16 Year Old 1990s / Squat Gold Wax for Velier

A legendary bottle of bourbon that has had a whole book written about itself: The Best Bourbon You'll Never Taste by Charles K Cowdery.

Distilled in Spring 1974, this bourbon is bottled from a single 400 barrel batch commissioned by Adolph Hirsch and distilled under contract at Michters distillery (then known as Pennco), just outside Schaefferstown, Pennsylvania. Hirsch was a former Schenley executive who had briefly worked at Michter's during his time there, and it is believed he commissioned the whisky as financial favour to the distillery, and actually had little plans for its use. So, it lay aging in the warehouses for much longer than generally expected for a bourbon at the time. 

With the closure of Michter's distillery, the bourbon was sold by Hirsch to Gordon Hue in 1991, who set about bottling it immediately.

Responsibility for the early bottling was entrusted to Julian Van Winkle III at his Old Commonwealth site in Lawrenceburg. However, his partnership with the Sazerac Company and creation of the Pappy Van Winkle brand in 2002, also saw bottling of the Hirsch Reserve moved briefly to Buffalo Trace. This is one of Van Winkle's earlier 1990's bottlings. Van Winkle's ledgers show that he was drip-fed orders for the Hirsch Reserve, and only produced limited case numbers to order when requested by Hue. This has lead to a variety of different bottlings at different ages. This gold wax topped \"squat\" bottle was filled at a slightly lower proof than others. This is essentially the same release as the \"squat black wax,\" however it was bottled for Velier and the Italian market instead.

Gordon Hue, who had maintained exclusive distribution rights to the Hirsch product despite the Van Winkle and Sazerac connections, eventually sold the brand to Preiss Imports who moved the subsequent and final bottling (technically re-bottling) to Kentucky Bourbon Distillers' Willett facility.

In his book Cowdery refers to the bourbon as one of the \"best whiskeys I've ever tasted.\"

Mash bill contains 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% malted barley.

Ardbeg 1975 Douglas Laing 25 Year Old

A rare independent bottling of Ardbeg, distilled in October 1975 and bottled in October 2000.

This is part of Douglas Laing's Old Malt Cask range, back when it was still part of their portfolio. Hunter Laing have bottled the label since 2013.

One of 702 bottles.

Ardbeg 1976 Samaroli

A very highly sought after Ardbeg, distilled 1976.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports in pantheon of whisky greats.

This bottling was bottled for Samaroli in Scotland by R.W. Duthie & Co. in 1993, and is the final addition to his Ardbeg series. Almost unbelievably, Samaroli reportedly had great difficulty selling the first release in this series, the 1974 vintage from 1983. It was not until a few years later that demand for the peaty flavours began to increase in Italy.

This is one of the final bottlings from Samaroli's partnership with R.W. Duthie, who had to stop working with him in the early 1990s due to increasing demand from their other client, Cadenhead's.

Bottle number 382 of 1020.

Ardbeg Auriverdes Gold Edition

This shiny Ardbeg Auriverdes, launched on 31st May 2014 on 'Ardbeg Day' which coincides with the 'Ardbeg Day' with the Islay Festival.  

A very rare bottle, this Auriverdes was never made available to the public, it was only given to journalists, bloggers and distillery ambassadors before the official release at the end of May 2014.

Auriverdes is a Portuguese term created by the combination of auri, meaning \"gold\" and verde, meaning \"green.\" The word is commonly used in reference to the national flag, or as a nickname for many of their sports teams on account of their uniforms. Coincidentally, these are also the brand colours of Ardbeg distillery.

Ardbeg 1974 Sestante 18 Year Old

A very, very rare Ardbeg indeed, distilled in 1974 and bottled as an 18 year old by Sestante.

Bottlings of Ardbeg from this period are like gold dust, so it is well worth investigating these older releases - even more so when they are from esteemed bottlers such as Sestante.

Avonside 1938 Gordon and MacPhail 35 Year Old / Co. Pinerolo Import

Rumour has it that Avonside was actually single malt from Glenlivet, however the title has also been used by Gordon and MacPhail for younger blends and blended malts.​

Distilled in 1938 and bottled as a 35 year old by Gordon and MacPhail for their Connoisseurs Choice range.

The black and red labelled Connoisseurs Choice labels were the very first. The range was initially devised for Edoardo Giaccone in Italy in the early 1970s, but became part of the main Gordon & MacPhail portfolio in 1979.

Bottle number 919.

Bottled for the Italian market and distributed by Co. Import, Pinerolo.

Ardbeg 1972 Douglas Laing 28 Year Old

A very rare bottling of Ardbeg, distilled in February 1972 and bottled by Douglas Laing in April 2000 as part of their Old Malt Cask range. 

One of 492 bottles. 

Ardbeg Guaranteed 30 Year Old 

This 'Guaranteed' 30 year old Ardbeg was one of the last releases by Allied Distillers before the Glenmorangie takeover in 1997.

This release was limited to only 29 casks.

Ardbeg Guaranteed 30 Year Old 

This 'Guaranteed' 30 year old Ardbeg was one of the last releases by Allied Distillers before the Glenmorangie takeover in 1997.

This release was limited to only 29 casks.

Ardbeg Guaranteed 30 Year Old 

This 'Guaranteed' 30 year old Ardbeg was one of the last releases by Allied Distillers before the Glenmorangie takeover in 1997.

This release was limited to only 29 casks.

Ardbeg 1965 Gordon and MacPhail 17 Year Old

A very old vintage of Ardbeg, bottled by Gordon & MacPhail as part of their Connoisseurs Choice series.

Distilled in 1965, matured for 17 years and imported to Italy by Mario Rossi Jr.

Ainslie's King's Legend Finest Scotch Whisky 1950s / Carlo Salengo Import

An old spring-cap bottle of Ainslie's King's Legend blended Scotch. This is a famous blend containing high quantities of single malt from the original Clynelish, the distillery nowadays known as Brora.

Carlo Salengo import for the Italian market.

Ardbeg 2005 Single Cask #1321

A single cask release form Islay's Ardbeg distillery. Distilled on 1st April 2005 and matured until being bottled on 3rd April 2018 as a 13 year old. 

Matured in Oloroso sherry butt #1321. 

Bottle number 377 of 543. 

Ardbeg 1975 Douglas Laing 27 Year Old 75cl / US Import

A rare independent bottling of Ardbeg, distilled in March 1975 and bottled in October 2002.

The Old Malt Cask series is one of the most established independent labels on the market. It was launched by Douglas Laing in 1998 and bottled by them until 2013 when the brand became part of the Hunter Laing portfolio instead.

One of 180 bottles.

Ardmore 1977 Samaroli / Aquarelles 1993

A fantastic vintage bottling of Springbank from Silvano Samaroli. This was bottled in 1993 as part of the Aquarelles series, along with a 1979 Springbank, and a 1971 vintage Glenlivet. An 'aquarelle' is a type of painting produced using thin transparent watercolours. All of the paintings featured on these labels were produced by Silvano himself.

Samaroli is perhaps Italy's most revered independent bottler of Scotch whisky. With an impeccable taste in single cask whiskies, and an eye for aesthetics (if not English spelling at times!), he is regarded by many as a visionary. Many of his bottles now occupy deserved sports on the pantheon of whisky greats.

This was distilled in 1977 and bottled from cask #6574 by R.W. Duthie, one of the last of their partnership with Samaroli which ended not long after due to their workload commitments with Cadenhead's.

This is bottle 19 of only 288.

Ardbeg 1975 Douglas Laing 27 Year Old Sherry Cask

A rare independent bottling of Ardbeg, distilled in March 1975 and bottled in May 2002.

This is part of Douglas Laing's Old Malt Cask range, back when it was still part of their portfolio. Hunter Laing have bottled the label since 2013.

One of 342 bottles drawn from a sherry cask.

Ardbeg Guaranteed 10 Year Old 1980s

A very rare, highly sought after bottle of Ardbeg 10 year old from the 1980s.

Ardbeg 13 Year Old Flagon 1980s / Friends of Adria Yacht Rimini Italy

A really rare release of Ardbeg, matured for 13 years and bottled for the friends of Adria Yacht Rimini Italy. 

Bottled we believe in the 1980's. 

No capacity or strength stated. 

Ardbeg 1975 Douglas Laing 24 Year Old

This Ardbeg was distilled in 1975 and bottled in 2000 at 24 years of age by Douglas Laing as part of their Old Malt Cask range. 

One of 234 bottles.