Glenlivet Gordon & Macphail 33 years Single Malt Whisky (70cl) 1986

Lot presentation

Glenlivet Gordon & Macphail 33 years Single Malt Whisky (70cl) 1986

The wine

With its Connoisseur’s Choice range, Gordon & MacPhail have been offering rare single malts from the best Scottish distilleries since the 1960s. This single cask honours Glenlivet, a distillery in the isolated valley of Livet in Northern Scotland, which became the first legal distillery in 1824. Distilled in 1986, this whisky spent 33 years in a sherry barrel before being bottled at cask strength, being 47.5%, without added colouring or chill-filtration.
This amber single cask reveals notes of small forest fruits and poached pears which are followed by cinnamon, orange zest and a slight oakiness. The red fruits are also present on the palate where the strawberry and raspberry come through the strongest. They are quickly joined by notes of liquorice, baked apple, and roasted hazelnuts. A subtle pepper note can be found in the finish. Only 303 bottles were produced.

About the Producer Glenlivet

Scotland, Speyside. Distillery operational. Owners: Chivas Brothers Ltd, Pernod Ricard

Chivas Brothers' flagship malt, The Glenlivet was widely introduced to the international scene and became one of the world's most popular Scottish malts in the early 1950s. Its owners completed something of a Herculean task, releasing Glenlivet in a number of different age expressions in the 1960s, including a 12, 15, 18 and 21 year old. Then, in the 1970s, it released superb vintage versions distilled 1959 and 1961, alongside the famous 12 year old, before beginning the new millennium with an outstanding range in the style of the day, The Glenlivet Cellar Collection. In terms of independent bottlings, it was under the colourful label “Glenlivet Whisky, George & JG Smith”, which paid tribute to the distillery's founder (also a colourful figure in the whisky industry in the 19th century), that bottlers released the malt, including Gordon & MacPhail who once again stood out with remarkable editions heavily influenced by sherry.

Detailed characteristics