The Perfect Collection Part Two

Johnnie Walker '1805' Celebration Blend 75cl / US Import

Johnnie Walker is arguably the most popular and recognisable blended Scotch on the market. Its core range includes the standard Red Label and Black Label, introduced in 1909 and named, quite simply, after their packaging. The iconic “striding man” motif was first drawn by Tom Browne the year prior. The premium Blue Label brand was introduced in 1992, and is composed using malt whisky from some of the most sought after distilleries in Diageo’s extensive portfolio. Today, many of these distilleries are only still with us due to their importance to the Johnnie Walker blends during the difficult 1980s period for the industry. A true champion of the whisky world. 

The 1805 is a near mythical bottle of Johnnie Walker, created by Jim Beveridge as one of the rarest and exclusive whiskies to mark the 200th anniversary of John Walker's birthday.

This was never intended for public sale as all of the bottles were gifted to people who (in the company's opinion) ‘made a significant contribution to modern life,’ the company has never divulged this list.

This very limited whisky was produced from only 9 casks, all aged between 45 and 70 years old and limited to only 200 bottles.  

Springbank 'Glen Cawdor' 1964 Samaroli Sherry Wood

A legendary bottling from the great Silvano Samaroli.

The Glen Cawdor name was in part borrowed by Silvano Samaroli from Shakespeare; Castle Cawdor of course being the setting for MacBeth. Samaroli used the Glen Cawdor name to disguise the the real name of certain distilleries, most commonly Springbank. When researching this bottle you will notice that some retailers and auctioneers refer to this as a Springbank, while if you look elsewhere you would read it is actually from Glen Ord. Emmanuel Dron, Samaroli's great friend has speculated that Silvano mis-remembered this bottles as the 1962 Glen Ord he bottled for the LELE restaurant. Either way, we don't think it matters. All that matters is that it is an exceptional bottling from an exceptional bottler.

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.

Distilled in 1964 and bottled in 1983 from a single sherry cask by R.W. Duthie.

Bottle number 29 of 360.

Springbank 50 Year Old Millennium Limited Edition 75cl / US Import

An older expression from this Campbeltown classic. This was bottled in September 1999 for the Millennium as part of a range of 6 bottles. 

The set comprised whiskies bottled at 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken  to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 50 Year Old Millennium Limited Edition 75cl / US Import

An older expression from this Campbeltown classic. This was bottled in September 1999 for the Millennium as part of a range of 6 bottles. 

The set comprised whiskies bottled at 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken  to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 45 Year Old Millennium Limited Edition 75cl / US Import

An older expression from this Campbeltown classic. This was bottled in September 1999 for the Millennium as part of a range of 6 bottles. 

The set comprised whiskies bottled at 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken  to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 1962 29 Year Old

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.  

This a very well-aged Springbank, distilled in December 1962 and bottled January 1992.

Springbank 1965 Moon Import #367 / The Birds I

Moon Import was founded by Pepi Mongiardino in 1980 and he bottled his first whisky in 1982. Always beautifully labelled, Pepi is acclaimed for designing the packaging for Moon Import bottles himself, often using images found in old books. These iconic designs, coupled with the quality of the liquid saw Moon Import steadily grow in popularity. The company is still going strong, and their early releases are some of the brightest gems in any whisky collection.

Moon Import released two The Birds series, the first in 1987 and the second in 1990. This is one of two Springbank from the first batch of releases.

Distilled in 1965 and bottled from sherry butt #367 in 1987, this is number 481 of 504 bottles. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is one of the only distilleries to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 35 Year Old Millennium Limited Edition / US Import

An older expression from this Campbeltown classic. This was bottled in September 1999 for the Millennium as part of a range of 6 bottles. 

The set comprised whiskies bottled at 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken  to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 1965 Samaroli 23 Year Old / Ageing Monography

An iconic Springbank bottling from Samaroli.

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 is part of a series called Ageing Monography. Samaroli was fascinated with the whisky ageing process, both in cask and in the bottle. This series designed to explore the evolution of Sprinbank maturation from an 18 month old single malt spirit, right through to this 23 year old. There are five releases in the series.

Ageing Monography were bottled in 1989 for Samaroli by R.W. Duthie. Bottle number 378 of 660.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 40 Year Old Millennium Limited Edition / US Import

An older expression from this Campbeltown classic. This was bottled in September 1999 for the Millennium as part of a range of 6 bottles. 

The set comprised whiskies bottled at 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 years. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken  to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 1964 Cadenhead's 34 Year Old Sherry Wood

The Authentic Collection was launched by Wm. Cadenhead in 1991, and included whiskies from several rare closed Scottish and Irish distilleries, bottled for the company's 150th anniversary. It would later go on to become a mainstay of their portfolio, as the cask strength alternative to the Original Collection, which replaced their famous \"dumpy\" bottlings in the early 1990s. The Authentic Collection is now the flagship Cadenhead brand, and one of the most recognisable independent labels on the market.

This is a 1964 vintage Springbank, bottled from sherry wood in April 1998.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is one of the only distilleries to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Springbank 1966 Bourbon Cask #472 75cl / Local Barley - US Import

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

This is one of a select number of releases produced using malted barley harvested from neighbouring farms in the Campbeltown area. They were first introduced in the late 1990s, and were eventually re-named as the Local Barley series in the 2000s.

This 1966 vintage was bottled from bourbon cask #472 in 1996. The barely for the release is from the Machrimore farm, and even the coal, peat and water used in the production of the whisky were sourced from within an 8 mile radius of the distillery.

Springbank 1966 Bourbon Cask #479 75cl / Local Barley - US Import

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

This is one of a select number of releases produced using malted barley harvested from neighbouring farms in the Campbeltown area. They were first introduced in the late 1990s, and were eventually re-named as the Local Barley series in the 2000s.

This 1966 vintage was bottled from bourbon cask #479 in 1997. The barely for the release is from the Machrimore farm, and even the coal, peat and water used in the production of the whisky were sourced from within an 8 mile radius of the distillery.

Springbank 1968 Samaroli 20 Year Old / Ageing Monography

An iconic Springbank bottling from Samaroli.

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 is part of a series called Ageing Monography. Samaroli was fascinated with the whisky ageing process, both in cask and in the bottle. This series designed to explore the evolution of Sprinbank maturation an 18 month old single malt spirit right through to a 23 year old. There are five releases in the series.

Ageing Monography were bottled in 1989 for Samaroli by R.W. Duthie. Bottle number 431  of 660.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

Springbank 1973 Samaroli 15 Year Old / Ageing Monography

An iconic Springbank bottling from  Samaroli.

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 is part of a series called Ageing Monography. Samaroli was fascinated with the whisky ageing process, both in cask and in the bottle. This series designed to explore the evolution of Sprinbank maturation from an 18 month old single malt spirit right through to a 23 year old. There are five releases in the series.

Ageing Monography were bottled in 1989 for Samaroli by R.W. Duthie. Bottle number 412.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

Springbank 1976 Samaroli 12 Year Old / Ageing Monography

An iconic Springbank bottling from  Samaroli.

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 is part of a series called Ageing Monography. Samaroli was fascinated with the whisky ageing process, both in cask and in the bottle. This series designed to explore the evolution of Sprinbank maturation from an 18 month old single malt spirit right through to a 23 year old. There are five releases in the series.

Ageing Monography were bottled in 1989 for Samaroli by R.W. Duthie. Bottle number 230 of 660.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

Springbank 1967 Prestonfield House 20 Year Old Sherry Wood

This is one of several sought-after bottles produced for Edinburgh's famous Prestonfield House Hotel, where Signatory Vintage director, Andrew Symington, was then employed as the Assistant Manager. These bottlings for his previous employer were the catalyst for the establishment of his own independent bottling company in 1988. He later launched The Prestonfield Whisky Co as a secondary brand in order to capitalise on the renown of the hotel bottlings in the wider market.

This Springbank was distilled on 31st October 1967 and matured for over 20 years in Sherry wood before being bottled in Scotland by J&A Mitchell. 

Bottle number 2025 drawn from a vatting of 6 sherry wood casks #3131-3136. 

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is one of the only distilleries to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

Jura 1966 Signatory Vintage 32 Year Old / 10th Anniversary

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 1966 vintage Jura was bottled to mark the company's 10th anniversary in 1998. It is one of 248 bottles drawn from cask #1485.

The Isle of Jura is one of the most isolated in the Hebridean archipelago, and by all logical accounts an unusual place to build a distillery. However, the historic site was re-opened in the 1960s, in part to provide jobs to what was a declining population at the time. The rebuilding of the distillery was back by blenders, Charles Mackinlay & Co, so like Bruichladdich, despite the island being covered in peat, it produced an un-peated spirit to meet the needs of their blends. This continued into the 1990s when Whyte & Mackay became its owners, although they did eventually introduce some peated malt to their distilling, launching the Jura Superstition in 2003. 

Springbank 1964 Adelphi 32 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Adelphi has a rich history, operating as a distillery in the Gorbals district of Glasgow from 1825, producing spirit from the waters of Loch Katrine. The distillery ceased production in the early 20th century however and several change sin ownership culminating in a takeover by Distillers Company Ltd in 1902. The Adelphi name was revived in 1993 by Jamie Walker, great-grandson of former distillery owner Archibald. With a lineage of whisky expertise he operated Adelphi as private bottling company, which now in the hands of Keith Falconer and David Houston, continues the fine work he began of bottling top quality expressions from Scotland's finest distilleries. This Springbank is yet another fine example of this.

A 1964 vintage Springbank, this was bottled in 1996 at 32 years of age.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts. 

Springbank 5 Year Old 1.5 Litre 1960s / A Sutti Import

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is one of the only distilleries to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

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.

Springbank 1967 Blackadder 33 Year Old Raw Cask 75cl / US Import

Blackadder International were founded in 1995 by whisky writers, Robin Tucek and John Lamond, authors of the 1987 publication, The Malt Whisky File: The Essential Guide for the Malt Whisky Connoisseur. The company has gained great affection from whisky enthusiasts for its Raw Cask series, which is deliberately drawn un-filtered from the cask so as to retain all cask sediment along with any natural oils and fats. The company is credited with a key role in the popularisation of cask strength whiskies since its inception.

This is one of those Raw Cask releases, distilled at Springbank in 1967 and bottled from a single hogshead in 2000.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.  

Springbank 1973 Cadenhead's 18 Year Old Rum Butt

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.  

A tropical storm hits Campbeltown with this now highly collectible Springbank, fully matured in a rum butt.

Distilled in June 1973 and bottled in September 1991 by sister company, Wm. Cadenhead.

St Magdalene 25 Year Old Cadenhead's early 1990s

Wm. Cadenhead are Scotland's oldest independent bottler, operating for over 175 years, but perhaps none of their bottlings are as sought after as these 'dumpy' style bottles. These were produced with brown glass and an iconic black label (white for the occasional grain whisky), with each distillery given its own letterpress font in homage to William Cadenhead's early career in the printing business.

This St Magdalene was bottled at 25 years of age and is part of the final batch of dumpy releases, prior to their discontinuation in 1991.

St Magdalene, also known as Linlithgow (after its home town) was a large distillery who's output was almost entirely for the purposes of blending. It was built in the 18th century, but was acquired by DCL (now Diageo) in 1912, who operated it until its closure in 1983. Like many others, it was deemed surplus to requirements as the blended Scotch market hit a downturn, leaving DCL over-supplied. As a result of this, its single malt is particularly rare. It was only officially bottled three times by Diageo, but a number of increasingly sought after releases have been bottled by independent companies over the years. The collectability of which is likely only to increase, as unlike other members of the 1983 club, St Magdalene was demolished and is not in line for a resurrection. 

Springbank 1965 Milroy's 29 Year Old Cask Strength 75cl / US Import

Milroys of Soho is a legendary bottle shop located on Greek Street in London. The store was foundered by John & Mary Milroy in 1964, but it was not until John's brother Wallace joined the company four years later that their focus on whisky was to catch up with their interest in wine. In that year alone, their single malt catalogue increased from just three to well over 30. Their dedication to this unfashionable style of whisky (at the time) continues to be rewarded today, with the Greek Street store still a cornerstone of London's whisky world.

This Springbank was distilled in 1965 and matured for 29 years in a rich sherry cask.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is one of the only distilleries to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.

W.L. Weller 10 Year Old Centennial 1990s / Stitzel-Weller

William Larue Weller was born into a distilling family in Kentucky in 1825, and launched his W.L. Weller brand in 1849. Originally a rectification business (creating 'whiskey' using neutral spirit, colouring and flavourings), this all changed with the Bottled in Bond Act of 1897 and the death of Weller two years later. The company was left in the hands of the fiercely passionate Julian 'Pappy' Van Winkle I who, having steered it safely through the wreckage of National Prohibition, established Old Weller alongside the newly acquired Old Fitzgerald labels and the flagship brands for the new Stitzel-Weller distillery in 1933. It was produced there for over 60 years, eventually being sold to the Sazerac Company in 1999, who distil it at Buffalo Trace using Pappy's recipe to this day.

The 10 year old Centennial was launched by United Distillers in 1996 as part of their Bourbon Heritage Collection. This range represented United Distillers brief excitement around bourbon before the newly formed Diageo turned its attentions elsewhere the following year. It was joined by an Old Charter, Old Fitzgerald, I.W. Harper and George Dickel. Only the latter two brands are still part of the Diageo portfolio today.

This will have been bottled using whiskey distilled at Old Fitzgerald distillery, the official name for Stitzel-Weller before it reverted to its historic title in 1992.

The Stitzel-Weller company was officially established in 1933 at the repeal of National Prohibition in the US. It was the result of a merger between the A. Ph. Stitzel distillery and its biggest customer, W.L. Weller & Sons. The Stitzel-Weller distillery opened on Kentucky Derby day in 1935, and quickly developed a reputation for its high quality wheated bourbon, and its main brands were Old Weller, Old Fitzgerald and Cabin Still. The original ownership was shared between Alex T. Farnsley, Arthur Philip Stitzel and Julian Van Winkle. The former passed-away in 1941 and 1947, respectively, leaving the Van Winkle family as the sole heirs to the business. 'Pappy' died in 1965, having handed the reigns to his son, Julian II the year prior, who ran it until 1972 when the board of directors forced him to sell it to the Norton-Simon subsidiary, Somerset Imports. When they were bought over by the American arm of Scottish distillers, DCL, its subsequent iteration invested heavily in bourbon. So much so in fact, that their newly rebuilt Bernheim distillery had such capacity that Stitzel-Weller was rendered surplus to requirements. It was shut down in 1992. Still part of the Diageo portfolio, it has never re-opened and instead now houses the visitor experience for their Bulleit brand.

Jameson's Bow Street 1963 Cadenhead's 27 Year Old 75cl / 150th Anniversary

Mis-spelled on the label at \"Jamieson's,\" this is an Irish whiskey from the Jameson Bow Street distillery.

This was distilled in 1963, just three years before the amalgamation of Jameson with fellow Dublin firm, Powers, and Cork Distillers to form the Irish Distillers group. Part of the plan for this new company was to consolidate all distilling operations at a new distillery in Midleton, adjacent to Cork Distillers' Old Midleton. This site opened in 1975, with Bow Street closing in preparation for it in 1971. It has developed a legendary status in Irish history since.

This was bottled in 1991 as a commemoration for the 150th anniversary of Wm. Cadenhead, which would be marked the following year.

This and a number of releases from other closed distilleries are the first incarnations of Cadenhead's Authentic Collection, now its flagship brand.

Strathisla 1948 Gordon and MacPhail 50 Year Old Rare Old

Speyside's oldest operating distillery, Strathisla was founded in 1786 as Milltown, and later renamed Milton in 1890. The distillery was an early advocate of its single malt, which it sold under the brand name, Strathisla, after the river that runs past the site. Strathisla single malt was bottled as early as the late 19th century, and proved very popular. None-the-less, by the 1940s it was struggling, needing rescued by Canadian giants, Seagram, who bought it in 1950, renaming it Strathisla the following year, and tasking it as a key contributor to its Chivas blends. Despite this, the single malt brand remained a core part of the business, and remains so to this day. 

Seagram licensed the distillery’s single malt brand to their Chivas Brothers blending operation, but also to Gordon & MacPhail. It is the latter’s bottles that are far more prominent. This good standing with the distillery has furnished the Elgin-based independent firm with a steady supply of high-quality casks, and subsequently, high-quality releases.

Discontinued in the spring of 2018 and replaced with the decadently revamped Private Collection range, Rare Old was the former premium range from Gordon & MacPhail. It was intended to showcase Scotland's legendary closed distilleries, as well as some of their oldest and finest stocks from those still in operation.

This is a 1948 vintage, bottled in 1998.

Strathisla 1948 Gordon and MacPhail 50 Year Old Rare Old

Speyside's oldest operating distillery, Strathisla was founded in 1786 as Milltown, and later renamed Milton in 1890. The distillery was an early advocate of its single malt, which it sold under the brand name, Strathisla, after the river that runs past the site. Strathisla single malt was bottled as early as the late 19th century, and proved very popular. None-the-less, by the 1940s it was struggling, needing rescued by Canadian giants, Seagram, who bought it in 1950, renaming it Strathisla the following year, and tasking it as a key contributor to its Chivas blends. Despite this, the single malt brand remained a core part of the business, and remains so to this day.  

Seagram licensed the distillery’s single malt brand to their Chivas Brothers blending operation, but also to Gordon & MacPhail. It is the latter’s bottles that are far more prominent. This good standing with the distillery has furnished the Elgin-based independent firm with a steady supply of high-quality casks, and subsequently, high-quality releases.

Discontinued in the spring of 2018 and repleaced with the decadently revamped Private Collection range, Rare Old was the former premium range from Gordon & MacPhail. It was intended to showcase Scotland's legendary closed distilleries, as well as some of their oldest and finest stocks from those still in operation.

Springbank 1978 / US Import

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.  

This is a 19878 vintage, bottled for the US in November 1991.

John Jameson 1949 Averys 37 Year Old

Averys of Bristol are a historic English wine-merchant and distributor, always famed for their forward-thinking outlook on wine and spirits. They were early champions of new world wines, and the first to import what are now recognised household names like Wolf Blass and Penfolds Grange. Similarly, they were also ahead of the curve with whisky, bottling single malts as early as the 1930s. There has been little output from the firm since the 1980s, but in their heydey they produced some incredibly sought after whisky and rum, including Macallan, Highland Park, and an elegantly labelled series for the Corti Brothers of Sacramento.

This single cask is from a batch of John Jameson whisky purchased by the company in 1949. At this time the only way to acquire Jameson whisky was to buy it in cask and bottle it under license from the Dublin company. It was not until the 1960s when it became part of the Irish Distillers group that Jameson was first sold by the bottle by the distillery.

This will have been produced at the historic Bow Street in Dublin, the last distillery to close there in 1971 after Ireland's three great distillers (Jameson, Powers and Cork Distillers) amalgamated their operations in 1966, eventually consolidting production at the New Midleton distillery in 1975.

This is the last cask of this parcel of 1949 vintage casks to be bottled by Averys, in 1987. By this point the Jameson brand had become a blend of Irish malt and grain whiskies. This therefore was an opportunity to sample the historic single pot still style produced at Bow Street.

Springbank 1965 Murray McDavid 35 Year Old 75cl / US Import

Murray McDavid were founded in 1996 by Mark Reynier, Simon Coughlin and ex-Springbank distillery Director, Gordon Wright. The company bought re-opened Bruichladdich distillery in December 2000, hiring Jim McEwan as Master Distiller. The company was purchased by Remy Cointreau in 2012, with the Murray McDavid brand eventually returning to Scottish hands the following year. Murray McDavid is famed for coining the term \"ACE-ing\" (additional cask enhancement) in relation to their cask finishing process, something they continue to use to great effect to this day.

This is a fantastic Springbank, distilled February 1965 and and matured in fresh sherry cask #580.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.  

Springbank 1980 Samaroli 8 Year Old / Ageing Monography

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 is part of a series called Ageing Monography. Samaroli was fascinated with the whisky ageing process, both in cask and in the bottle. This series designed to explore the evolution of Sprinbank maturation from an 18 month old single malt spirit right through to a 23 year old. There are five releases in the series.

Ageing Monography were bottled in 1989 for Samaroli by R.W. Duthie. Bottle number 530.

Springbank distillery has been owned and operated by the Mitchell family in Campbeltown since 1837, and it one of Scotland's most revered distilleries. Following a brief mothballing between 1979 and 1987, upon the reopening the decision was taken to cease all sales to the blending industry and focus on its single malt sales. Today it is the only distillery to malt, distil, bottle and mature whisky on the same site, and produces three distinct and highly prized single malts.