Gordon & MacPhail release ultra-rare 74-year-old whisky

September 22, 2023
By Rachel White

The latest release in Gordon & MacPhail’s Private Collection, Gordon & MacPhail 1949 from Glenlivet Distillery, is a single malt of extraordinary origin, having been laid down at Glenlivet Distillery on New Year’s Day 1949 and bottled on March 6, 2023. 

Priced at an eye-watering £35,000, the ultra-rare whisky was matured in a refill Sherry butt and retains a cask strength of 49.3 per cent ABV. Only 192 bottles are available for sale.

Dave Broom, a respected whisky writer, said it’s “absolutely extraordinary” to find a whisky of this age, with each of its 74 years represented in the complexity of character and depth of taste. 

“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,” he said. 

Ewen Mackintosh, Managing Director at Gordon & MacPhail, said: “Patience, knowledge, skill, and a commitment to quality are all principles exemplified in this greatly aged single malt. Gordon & MacPhail 1949 from Glenlivet Distillery is extremely scarce – our very last cask of Glenlivet from 1949, making it a must for whisky enthusiasts looking to savour a remarkable greatly aged single malt exuding layers of character and decades of maturation expertise.”

Initially released to the public in partnership with Le Clos at Dubai International Airport, the Gordon & MacPhail 1949 from Glenlivet Distillery is now available to purchase worldwide. 

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