Port Ellen 1981/2023 G&M PVC Private Collection #290

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 52.5% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

This 42-year-old Islay single malt matured in refill sherry butt 290. Port Ellen distilled the new make spirit in 1981; Gordon & MacPhail bottled the whisky on 6 February 2023 at 52.5%. The single cask yielded 181 bottles.

This Private Collection bottling combines dark fruits and chocolate with warming spices, nutty sweetness and smoke. Dried fruits and bonfire embers remain present in the long, full finish.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: The nose brings together dark chocolate, ginger and cinnamon with blackcurrant, Medjool date and vanilla.
• Palate: On the palate, fruitcake and baked apple combine with sweet smoke, peanut brittle, dark cherry and black pepper.
• Finish: The finish is long and full, with lingering dried fruits and bonfire embers.

Distillery/Bottler:

Port Ellen was founded in 1825 in the Islay village of the same name. The distillery closed in 1983 and resumed production in 2024 following an extensive restoration. Distilled in 1981, this whisky therefore comes from its historic period of production before the closure.

Gordon & MacPhail began in 1895 as a grocery, wine and spirits merchant and developed particular expertise in selecting and maturing single malts over several generations. The company matches spirits with oak casks, monitors their development through regular sampling and then determines when they are ready to be bottled. For this Port Ellen, Gordon & MacPhail oversaw the long maturation and was responsible for the independent bottling as part of the Private Collection.

Facts: