Glenlochy 1979/2023 G&M PVC Private Collection #3309

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 53.6% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

This single-cask release preserves whisky from Glenlochy, the Highland distillery that closed in 1983. Distilled on 15 November 1979, the single malt matured for 43 years in American oak refill hogshead number 3309. Refill denotes a cask previously used to mature whisky.

Gordon & MacPhail bottled the whisky on 11 January 2023 for the Private Collection as part of the second Recollection Series. This annual series explores long-matured stocks from the independent bottler’s warehouses. Cask 3309 yielded 141 bottles at a natural cask strength of 53.6%. The whisky is neither chill-filtered nor coloured. The bottle contains 0.7 litres and comes in an oak presentation case.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: Bold vanilla opens the nose before ripe red apple emerges. Subtle hints of waxy lemon peel and sweet malt biscuits add to the aroma.
• Palate: The whisky feels smooth and creamy on the palate. Exotic fruits give way to chocolate and lime. Mature oak notes soften the ginger spice and notes of dried apricots.
• Finish: The smooth finish carries lingering aniseed and leaves a menthol note.

Distillery/Bottler:

Glenlochy stood in Fort William in the western Highlands. The distillery was built in 1898 by Glenlochy - Fort William Distillery Co. Ltd, whose founder, David McAndie, came from Nairn. After production stopped in 1919, it initially remained closed apart from a brief period of operation in 1925. In 1937, local car-hire operator Thomas Rankin bought the site and sold it on shortly afterwards. Its final period of production ended in 1983.

Gordon & MacPhail is the independent bottler of this Glenlochy and traces its origins to a shop opened in Elgin in 1895. Over generations, the company has filled new-make spirit from more than 100 Scottish distilleries into specially selected casks. For the Private Collection, members of the Urquhart family select long-matured single malts from well-known, lesser-known and closed distilleries.

As part of its cask selection, Gordon & MacPhail works with partners including Speyside Cooperage to source ex-bourbon casks from North America. During maturation, the team monitors development through cask samples and decides whether the whisky in each cask is ready for bottling or should mature further. Older stocks are sampled more frequently so that wood and spirit flavours are in balance at the desired bottling point.

Facts: