Gordon & MacPhail, the famed independent Scotch bottler announced last month that they will begin to wind down their indie bottling business as of 2024 - specifically filling new casks with acquired Scotch whiskies, ceasing 128 years of the trade as a result of fundamental changes in the Scotch whisky business.

However, fret not as the company will continue to put out independently bottled whiskies that are already sitting in their storehouses, and will shift their focus to their own distilleries such as Benromach and The Cairn.

Despite the news, it does seem like we have a really well-aged indie bottling from G&M afoot - a 1949 74 Year Old Glenlivet Single Malt!

This comes from the G&M Private Collection range. This was matured in a refill Sherry butt auspiciously selected by G&M on New Year's Day 1949, before being bottled on 6th March 2023. The age makes it one of the oldest Glenlivets ever to be released by G&M, and is also said to be G&M's last ever 1949 cask from Glenlivet. 

Despite its phenomenal age of 74 years, G&M was nonetheless able to still bottle it at a generous 49.3% ABV.

Official Tasting Notes

Nose

Layered with complex notes and full of vibrancy and character, the whisky displays sweet, stewed fruit aromas that combine with fragrant cinnamon, aged leather, clementine, and beeswax polish.

Palate 

Autumnal spices and fruitcake are balanced by cracked pepper, with undertones of garden mint, dark treacle, and charred oak.

Finish

A spicy finish with lasting citrus fruit and mixed nuts.

Whisky expert David Broom is full of praise for this release. He shared that “What comes across immediately is the fruit - there’s richness and there’s depth. You have this wonderful interplay of distillery character, of oak and oxygen. It’s a gift that keeps on giving." 

"When you taste it, you taste time. You can taste all the vintages and everything that’s happened. The concentration of fruits, the layers and the complexity are off the scale. You’d think it’s an old whisky but it’s not just an old whisky. It's an extraordinary whisky.”

If you're based in Singapore, La Maison du Whisky is currently accepting orders on an inquiry basis. 

Kanpai!

88 Bamboo Editorial Team