The Perfect Collection Part One

Millburn 1974 Signatory Vintage 22 Year Old Miniature / Silent Stills

Millburn was the oldest of the three distilleries based in Inverness, the others being Glen Mhor and Glen Albyn, all of which closed within two years of each other. Millburn was the last, in 1985. The distillery was brought to prominence under the ownership of the Haig family at the end of the 19th century, but was always a smnall operation. It passed via the hands of Booth's (a London-based gin distillery), to DCL (now Diageo) in 1937. Its small stature made it an easy pick for closure during the era of oversupply in the 1980s, and sadly it has never returned. Never officially bottled in its time, the only distillery bottlings are within the Rare Malt Selection, and elusive independent releases like this are incredibly sought after.

Distilled on 12th November 1974, this was bottled within Signatory Vintage's Silent Stills range, which at the time showcased Scotland's finest discontinued single malts (some, such as Glenglassaugh, have since returned).

Cask #4614 produced 290 full size and miniature bottles.

Signatory Vintage were established in 1988 by Andrew Symington and are one of Scotland's most prolific independent bottlers. Their offices and bottling facility are located next to Edradour distillery, which they have also owned since 2002.

Miltonduff 5 Year Old 1970s / Spirit Import

Miltonduff is located in Speyside and is perhaps best known as one of the key malts in the Ballantine's blends. It was purchased by Hiram Walker in the 1930s, who installed the Lomond stills that briefly produced the now sought after Mosstowie single malts in 1964, but these were removed again in 1981. The distillery passed through the hands Allied Distillers before arriving with current owners, Pernod-Ricard, and despite its continued requirements for Ballantine's blends, official bottlings of its single malt have been deemed worthy of bottling by each of its proprietors, a sentiment shared by many independent companies too.  

This is a bottling for the Italian market, in the form of a youthful 5 year old age-statement that was the market preference. The Italian love of younger single malt was the discovery of Armando Giovinetti, the agent for Glen Grant in the 1960s. He, correctly, hypothesised that the lighter flavours of a 5 year old malt would be better suited to the grappa-loving palate of his countrymen, and the contined success of the Glen Grant 5 year old there today is testament to his foresight.

Tullibardine 10 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. In addition to selling the stock to third-party blenders, Whyte & Mackay used it for their own products, including some well-regarded official single malt releases. Among these are some exceptional single casks, and several additions to the sought after Stillman's Dram series.

This is a 1990s bottling of the official 10 year old, discontinued after the distillery was sold in 2003.

Tamnavulin 10 Year Old 75cl 1990s / US Import

Tamnavulin distillery was opened in 1966 by Invergordon Distillers as a response to the increasing demands for their blends, and such provision has always been the distillery's focus. Despite this, Invergordon Distillers were always interested in bottling their single malts, and Tamnavulin was no different. They even boasted the legendary Moon Import are their Italian agents in the later 1980s. When Invergordon were bought over by Whyte & Mackay in 1995, the distillery was mothballed, but eventually re-opened in 2007. It now has a more prominent range for its single malt brand, and earlier distillery bottlings like this are becoming something of a rarity.

This is an older release of the 10 year old age-statement, bottled in the 1990s. This was later discontinued in favour of a 12 year old after post-closure stocks made a 10 year old bottling impossible.

Tobermory Malt Scotch Whisky 75cl / US Import

The Isle of Mull's Tobermory distillery was first opened way back in 1798, and was known as Ledaig, which was the case for much of its history. It was dormant for the majority of the 20th century, shut down by DCL in 1930, and when it re-opened in 1972, it did so as again as Ledaig distillery. Its revival was only brief however, closing down in 1975. When the distillery was re-opened in 1979, it was now known as Tobermory. Its production in former years had generally been peated whisky, but the newly revived company began producing non-peated as well, for the provision of a blended malt which they marketed under the Tobermory name. Burn Stewart discontinued the blend when they took over in 1993, opting to continue the production of both styles as two distinct single malt brands. The un-peated single malt took over the Tobermory brand, while the traditional peated style fittingly retained the historic Ledaig name.

This is the pre-Burn Stewart version of the Tobermory brand, a vatted malt produced using whisky distilled at Ledaig in the early 1970s, and younger malts from elsewhere. Confusingly, Burn Stewart would continue to use this aesthetic for the brand when they took over in 1993, despite the product now being a single malt. It retained this look until 2007.

Tullibardine 1989 Lombard's Jewels of the Highlands 75cl / US Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. Whyte & Mackay bottled some Tullibardine as a single malt, but also sold a lot of the stock to third party blenders and bottlers, resulting in some excellent independent releases.

This is an independent bottling produced by Lombard for their Jewels of the Highlands series. It is a 1989 vintage, bottled in 2000.

Lombard was a company originally based on the Isle of Man. Although blending was their chief concern, they began to acquire stocks of well-selected single malt in the 1960s, the legacy of which has provided some fantastic independent releases.

Tullibardine 1989 Lombard's Jewels of the Highlands 75cl / US Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. Whyte & Mackay bottled some Tullibardine as a single malt, but also sold a lot of the stock to third party blenders and bottlers, resulting in some excellent independent releases.

This is an independent bottling produced by Lombard for their Jewels of the Highlands series. It is a 1989 vintage, bottled in 2000.

Lombard was a company originally based on the Isle of Man. Although blending was their chief concern, they began to acquire stocks of well-selected single malt in the 1960s, the legacy of which has provided some fantastic independent releases.

Tantallan 1979 Highland Single Malt

The Vintage Malt Whisky Company is a family-owned firm in Glasgow, founded in 1992 by Brian Crook. In addition to their Cooper's Choice series, they also bottle number of their own single malt brands, such as Finlaggan (an Islay) and this Tantallan (a Highland), using whisky sourced from unspecified distilleries. 

McClelland's 12 Year Old Sherry Finished Highland Single Malt 75cl / US Import

A sherry cask finished Highland single malt from T&A McClelland.

T&A McClelland were founded by two brothers, Thomas and Andrew, who established the Bladnoch distillery in 1817. Their company was bought by Dunville in 1911 who closed Bladnoch in the 1930s (later selling it on), but continued to run the company as a blending firm. It was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1970, who bottled a number of blends and \"mystery\" single malts under the T&A McClelland banner over the years.

The Highland distillery in the Morrison Bowmore portfolio at this time was Glen Garioch...

McClelland's Islay Single Malt 75cl / US Import

An Islay single malt from T&A McClelland.

T&A McClelland were founded by two brothers, Thomas and Andrew, who established the Bladnoch distillery in 1817. Their company was bought by Dunville in 1911 who closed Bladnoch in the 1930s (later selling it on), but continued to run the company as a blending firm. It was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1970, who bottled a number of blends and \"mystery\" single malts under the T&A McClelland banner over the years.

This was likely produced at a certain Islay distillery from the Morrison Bowmore portfolio at the time...

Miltonduff 12 Year Old 1980s

Miltonduff is located in Speyside and is perhaps best known as one of the key malts in the Ballantine's blends. It was purchased by Hiram Walker in the 1930s, who installed the Lomond stills that briefly produced the now sought after Mosstowie single malts in 1964, but these were removed again in 1981. The distillery passed through the hands Allied Distillers before arriving with current owners, Pernod-Ricard, and despite its continued requirements for Ballantine's blends, official bottlings of its single malt have been deemed worthy of bottling by each of its proprietors.  

This is a 1980s distillery bottling from the end of the Hiram Walker era.

Tullibardine 10 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. In addition to selling the stock to third-party blenders, Whyte & Mackay used it for their own products, including some well-regarded official single malt releases. Among these are some exceptional single casks, and several additions to the sought after Stillman's Dram series.

This is a 1990s bottling of the official 10 year old, discontinued after the distillery was sold in 2003.

Talisker Gordon and MacPhail 70 Proof Miniature 1970s

For a long time, Talisker was the sole distillery on Scotland’s iconic Isle of Skye. Renowned for the quality of its output, the distillery has rarely changed hands, joining DCL (now Diageo) back in 1916. Despite this, releases were not the most common. An 8 year old was bottled officially and Gordon & MacPhail produced what are now classic and sought after vintage bottlings under official license from the distillery. When a 10 year old expression became a founding pillar of United Distillers’ Classic Malts range, the popularity of the distillery exploded, and it is now one of the most revered and exported in Scotland. As such, independent bottlings like this are scarce, and particularly sought after when they appear. 

Although their access to casks of Talisker has dried up in recent years, Gordon & MacPhail regularly bottled these \"eagle label\" releases through the 1970s and 1980s. These are regarded as being of exceptional quality, and are highly sought after. 

Mosstowie 1976 Signatory Vintage 21 Year Old Miniature / Silent Stills

Mosstowie is a long-discontinued single malt that was produced at the Miltonduff distillery in Speyside using Lomond stills. The stills were installed in the 1960s by owners Hiram Walker, who had done likewise at their Scapa, Inverleven and Glenburgie distilleries. The experiment was short-lived, with Miltonduff's Lomond stills ripped out and replaced by traditional pot stills in 1981. Primarlily used as a constituent in Ballantine's blends, Mosstowie is rarely seen as a single malt, and sought after when it is.

Distilled on 20th October 1976, this was bottled within Signatory Vintage's Silent Stills range, which at the time showcased Scotland's finest discontinued single malts (some, such as Glenglassaugh, have since returned).

Bottled on 28th May 1998 at 21 years of age. Cask #12886 yielded 242 full size and miniature bottles.

Signatory Vintage were established in 1988 by Andrew Symington and are one of Scotland's most prolific independent bottlers. Their offices and bottling facility are located next to Edradour distillery, which they have also owned since 2002.

Tullibardine 5 Year Old 1970s / Sposetti & Paparone Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. In addition to selling the stock to third-party blenders, Whyte & Mackay used it for their own products, including some well-regarded official single malt releases. Among these are some exceptional single casks, and several additions to the sought after Stillman's Dram series.  

This is a bottling for the Italian market, in the form of a youthful 5 year old age-statement that was the market preference. The Italian love of younger single malt was the discovery of Armando Giovinetti, the agent for Glen Grant in the 1960s. He, correctly, hypothesised that the lighter flavours of a 5 year old malt would be better suited to the grappa-loving palate of his countrymen, and the contined success of the Glen Grant 5 year old there today is testament to his foresight.

Tomintoul 8 Year Old 1980s

Tomintoul distillery was built in Speyside in 1965 by two whisky brokering companies. It was later acquired by the parent firm of Whyte & Mackay, and folded into their portfolio in 1973. While its main function was the provision of its blends, as with all of its distilleries, Whyte & Mackay also had faith in its appeal as a single malt. It was introduced in the iconic \"perfume bottles\" at the end of the 1970s. The single malt brand was given more of a focus when the distillery was bought by Angus Dundee in 2000, who also introduced a peated variant called Old Ballantruan in 2005.  

This is an old 1980s bottling from the Whyte & Mackay era core range, bottled in a regular glass bottle as opposed the perfume style container that was also used at the time.

Tamdhu Single Malt

Tamdhu is a historic Speyside producer, and for many years was alone with Springbank and Glen Ord as being the only fully self-sufficient distilleries in Scotland. It was the first in Scotland to install Saladin boxes for malting and today it is the last distillery to still use them, which in its years being owned by Edrington, also supplied malt to Glenrothes and Highland Park. Traditionally, Tamdhu was mostly used in blends such as Cutty Sark and The Famous Grouse, but it has always been regarded as a great single malt, and new owners, Ian Macleod Distillers, are now focussing on this. 

This is an old version of the non-age statement core product, replaced by a sherry casked 10 year old when the distillery was bought over by Ian Macleod.

Tullibardine 10 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Tullibardine distillery in Perthshire was built in 1949 and was quickly acquired by blending firm, Brodie Hepburn. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the distillery came under ownership of Whyte & Mackay in 1993, who shut it down following year. In the preceding decades, its large production capacity had filled its even larger warehouses. In addition to selling the stock to third-party blenders, Whyte & Mackay used it for their own products, including some well-regarded official single malt releases. Among these are some exceptional single casks, and several additions to the sought after Stillman's Dram series.

This is a 1990s bottling of the official 10 year old, discontinued after the distillery was sold in 2003.

Tobermory 10 Year Old 75cl / US Import

The Isle of Mull's Tobermory distillery was first opened way back in 1798, and was known as Ledaig, which was the case for much of its history. It was dormant for the majority of the 20th century, shut down by DCL in 1930, and when it re-opened in 1972, it did so as again as Ledaig distillery. Its revival was only brief however, closing down in 1975. When the distillery was re-opened in 1979, it was now known as Tobermory. Its production in former years had generally been peated whisky, but the newly revived company began producing non-peated as well, for the provision of a blended malt which they marketed under the Tobermory name. Burn Stewart discontinued the blend when they took over in 1993, opting to continue the production of both styles as two distinct single malt brands. The un-peated single malt took over the Tobermory brand, while the traditional peated style fittingly retained the historic Ledaig name.

This is the Burn Stewart era Tobermory single malt, aged for 10 years and introduced in the late 1990s.

Mosstowie 1976 Signatory Vintage 21 Year Old Miniature / Silent Stills

Mosstowie is a long-discontinued single malt that was produced at the Miltonduff distillery in Speyside using Lomond stills. The stills were installed in the 1960s by owners Hiram Walker, who had done likewise at their Scapa, Inverleven and Glenburgie distilleries. The experiment was short-lived, with Miltonduff's Lomond stills ripped out and replaced by traditional pot stills in 1981. Primarlily used as a constituent in Ballantine's blends, Mosstowie is rarely seen as a single malt, and sought after when it is.

Distilled on 20th October 1976, this was bottled within Signatory Vintage's Silent Stills range, which at the time showcased Scotland's finest discontinued single malts (some, such as Glenglassaugh, have since returned).

Bottled on 28th May 1998 at 21 years of age. Cask #12886 yielded 242 full size and miniature bottles.

Signatory Vintage were established in 1988 by Andrew Symington and are one of Scotland's most prolific independent bottlers. Their offices and bottling facility are located next to Edradour distillery, which they have also owned since 2002.

McClelland's Speyside Single Malt 75cl / US Import

A Speyside single malt from T&A McClelland.

T&A McClelland were founded by two brothers, Thomas and Andrew, who established the Bladnoch distillery in 1817. Their company was bought by Dunville in 1911 who closed Bladnoch in the 1930s (later selling it on), but continued to run the company as a blending firm. It was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1970, who bottled a number of blends and \"mystery\" single malts under the T&A McClelland banner over the years.

Morrison Bowmore did not have a Speyside distillery in their portfolio, so the source of this whisky is anyone's guess.

Tomintoul 14 Year Old 75cl 1990s / US Import

Tomintoul distillery was built in Speyside in 1965 by two whisky brokering companies. It was later acquired by the parent firm of Whyte & Mackay, and folded in to their portfolio in 1973. While its main function was the provision of its blends, as with all of its distilleries, Whyte & Mackay also had faith in its appeal as a single malt. It was introduced in the iconic \"perfume bottles\" at the end of the 1970s. The single malt brand was given more of a focus when the distillery was bought by Angus Dundee in 2000, who also introduced a peated variant called Old Ballantruan in 2005.  

This 14 year old was part of the core range during the Whyte & Mackay era, but was discontinued in favour of a 10 year old by Angus Dundee.

Tamdhu Single Malt 75cl / US Import

Tamdhu is a historic Speyside producer, and for many years was alone with Springbank and Glen Ord as being the only fully self-sufficient distilleries in Scotland. It was the first in Scotland to install Saladin boxes for malting and today it is the last distillery to still use them, which in its years being owned by Edrington, also supplied malt to Glenrothes and Highland Park. Traditionally, Tamdhu was mostly used in blends such as Cutty Sark and The Famous Grouse, but it has always been regarded as a great single malt, and new owners, Ian Macleod Distillers, are now focussing on this. 

This is an old version of the non-age statement core product, replaced by a sherry casked 10 year old when the distillery was bought over by Ian Macleod.

Talisker 10 Year Old 75cl / US Import

For a long time, Talisker was the sole distillery on Scotland’s iconic Isle of Skye. Renowned for the quality of its output, the distillery has rarely changed hands, joining DCL (now Diageo) back in 1916. Despite this, releases were not the most common. An 8 year old was bottled officially and Gordon & MacPhail produced what are now classic and sought after vintage bottlings under official license from the distillery. When a 10 year old expression became a founding pillar of United Distillers’ Classic Malts range in 1988, the popularity of the distillery exploded, and it is now one of the most revered and exported in Scotland.

This is a bottling of said core range 10 year old.

McClelland's Lowland Single Malt 75cl / US Import

A Lowland single malt from T&A McClelland.

T&A McClelland were founded by two brothers, Thomas and Andrew, who established the Bladnoch distillery in 1817. Their company was bought by Dunville in 1911 who closed Bladnoch in the 1930s (later selling it on), but continued to run the company as a blending firm. It was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1970, who bottled a number of blends and \"mystery\" single malts under the T&A McClelland banner over the years.

The Lowland distillery in the Morrison Bowmore portfolio at this time was Auchentoshan...

Tormore 5 Year Old 1980s / Stock Import

Tormore is one of Speyside's most aesthetically pleasing distilleries, designed in 1959 by Sir Albert Richardson (then president of the Royal Academy). It was built by the Schenley company in order to provide malt for their Long John blends. Despite this, its single malt has been bottled by all of its owners over the years, including as part of the short-lived Caledonian Malts range from Allied Distillers, alongside Laphroaig and Glendronach. Despite this, distillery bottlings are still something of a rarity.

 An old 1980s bottling of Tormore, bottled while the distillery was owned by Whitbread and still bearing the coat of arms of the Long John blend to which provision of malt was still its primary focus.

This is a bottling for the Italian market, in the form of a youthful 5 year old age-statement that was the market preference. The Italian love of younger single malt was the discovery of Armando Giovinetti, the agent for Glen Grant in the 1960s. He, correctly, hypothesised that the lighter flavours of a 5 year old malt would be better suited to the grappa-loving palate of his countrymen, and the contined success of the Glen Grant 5 year old there today is testament to his foresight.

McClelland's Highland Single Malt 75cl / US Import

A Highland single malt from T&A McClelland.

T&A McClelland were founded by two brothers, Thomas and Andrew, who established the Bladnoch distillery in 1817. Their company was bought by Dunville in 1911 who closed Bladnoch in the 1930s (later selling it on), but continued to run the company as a blending firm. It was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1970, who bottled a number of blends and \"mystery\" single malts under the T&A McClelland banner over the years.

The Highland distillery in the Morrison Bowmore portfolio at this time was Glen Garioch...