The Perfect Collection Part One

North Port 1979 Rare Malt 20 Year Old / 61.2%

The Rare Malt Selection was a historic selection of single malt whiskies from operational and lost distilleries that were released by Diageo between 1995 and 2005. As with the Flora & Fauna series, they were often from lesser-seen single malt distilleries.

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of limited edition distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. 

Distilled in 1979, this is one of three in the series.

North Port 1971 Rare Malt 23 Year Old 75cl / 54.7% - US Import

The Rare Malt Selection was a historic selection of single malt whiskies from operational and lost distilleries that were released by Diageo between 1995 and 2005. As with the Flora & Fauna series, they were often from lesser-seen single malt distilleries.

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of limited edition distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. 

Distilled in 1971, this is North Port's first ever distillery bottling and is one of three in the series.

Victoria 12 Year Old Straight Malt circa 1940s

An Austrlian straight malt whisky produced by Stephen King PTY in Melbourne. Stephen King also had a hand in early Bundaberg rum bottlings, but disappeared in 1968 and being absorebed into John Cawsey & Co.

This was imported to the US around the 1940s.

North British 1964 Signatory Vintage 25 Year Old

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.

This is a 1964 vintage single grain, bottled from four casks in February 1990.

Prior to 1885, Scottish blenders were only able to acquire grain whisky from DCL. This changed when the firms of John Crabbie, Andrew Usher, William Sanderson and John Watson collaborated to open the North British distillery in Edinburgh. Production began two years later on a single coffey still, and the distillery continued to grow, flourishing in the post-war period. In 1993 it was taken over by Lothian Distillers, a partnership between IDV and Robertson & Baxter, the modern iterations of which, Diageo and Edrington, retain a controlling stake in today. Occasional distillery bottlings have appeared over the years, but the majority of examples of its single grain come from independent labels like this.

North Port-Brechin 1970 Gordon and MacPhail 20 Year Old Spirit of Scotland 

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. Rare and increasingly sought after independent releases like this have also appeared over the years though. 

This is a 1970 vintage, bottled by Gordon & MacPhail under both of the distillery's former names, and under their Speymalt pseudonym as part of the Spirit of Scotland range.

North Port-Brechin 1970 Gordon and MacPhail

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. Rare and increasingly sought after independent releases like this have also appeared over the years though. 

This is a 1970 vintage, bottled by Gordon & MacPhail using both historical distillery names in the 1980s.

The Connoisseurs Choice label is one of the most recognisable independent bottlings on the market. It was initially created for renowned Italian importer, Edoardo Giaccone in the early 1970s, but became a mainstay of the core Gordon & MacPhail portfolio in 1979.

North Port-Brechin 1974 Gordon and MacPhail

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. Rare and increasingly sought after independent releases like this have also appeared over the years though. 

This is a 1974 vintage, bottled by Gordon & MacPhail using both historical distillery names in 1996.

The Connoisseurs Choice label is one of the most recognisable independent bottlings on the market. It was initially created for renowned Italian importer, Edoardo Giaccone in the early 1970s, but became a mainstay of the core Gordon & MacPhail portfolio in 1979.

North Port 1982 Glenhaven 14 Year Old 75cl / US Import

The Brechin distillery was built in 1820 by the Guthrie family, who changed its named to North Port at some point later that century. It was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1922, who closed it down six years later. Production briefly resumed for two years before the war, but it was not until 1945 that regular distilling recommenced. North Port was one of the nine distilleries closed by DCL in 1983 after a market downturn meant their blends were oversupplied. It never re-opened and the site now houses a supermarket. Its single malt is very rare, and was never officially bottled in its lifetime. Diageo have produced only a handful of distillery bottlings, the first of which were in the Rare Malts Selection. Rare and increasingly sought after independent releases like this have also appeared over the years though. 

Glenhaven was a short-lived independent bottler, mostly exporting their releases to America. Their bottlings appeared between 1994 and 1997, when their founder Bill Thompson sadly passed away, halting operations at the firm.

Whyte and Mackay 30 Year Old Very Rare 75cl / US Import

James Whyte and Charles Mackay started their company in 1882, quickly launching their Whyte & Mackay special blend. Their sales were predominantly in the export market until after the second world war, when they renewed their focus domestically. The firm merged with the Mackenzie Brothers in 1960, giving them their first distillery, Dalmore. They soon added Tamnavulin, Fettercairn and the Invergordon grain distillery to their portfolio, all of which have been key contributors to their blends over the years. Whyte & Mackay have always been forward thinking in their approach, using sherry finishing for their proprietary blend, and introducing the first 40 fl oz bottle for the on-trade in 1963 (now an industry standard). Today the brand is synonymous with its master blender, Richard Paterson, and remains one of the most popular Scotch brands in the world.

This is a US import bottling of the premium 30 year old blend.

Wiser's Very Old 18 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Wiser's is the oldest continuously produced brand of whisky in Canada, and was one of the first to be sold by the bottle, an innovation introduced by J.P. Wiser in 1893. The brand was bought by Hiram Walker in 1935, and they continue to produce it today at their distillery in Windsor, Ontario.

Waitrose 12 Year Old Islay Single Malt

A mystery Islay single malt, aged 12 years and bottled for upmarket UK supermarket chain, Waitrose.

Waitrose 12 Year Old Islay Single Malt

A mystery Islay single malt, aged 12 years and bottled for upmarket UK supermarket chain, Waitrose.

Waitrose 12 Year Old Islay Single Malt

A mystery Islay single malt, aged 12 years and bottled for upmarket UK supermarket chain, Waitrose.

Waitrose 12 Year Old Islay Single Malt

A mystery Islay single malt, aged 12 years and bottled for upmarket UK supermarket chain, Waitrose.

Whitfield's Highland Malt 75cl / US Import

Whitfield's is a single malt brand produced by the Charles H. Julian company using whisky from undisclosed sources.

Charles H. Julian is one of the most important figures in the history of Scotch whisky, having composed the Cutty Sark blend for Berry Brothers & Rudd, the J&B blend, and later the Chivas Regal 12 year old for Seagram. He eventually struck out on his own, starting the Charles H. Julian company. It is best known for its Excalibur blend, and was eventually incorporated by his successors in 1995, seeing it later sold to the Lockwood family in Essex.