The distillery featured in WhiskyFun Legends this week is the topic of one of the crucial anticipated distillery reopenings in historical past: Port Ellen.
The bottle in query is the Port Ellen 1969 15 Yr Previous Celtic Label Gordon & Macphail For Intertrade
Don’t overlook to learn the earlier installments of WhiskyFun Legends here.
The Port Ellen 1969 15 Yr Previous Celtic Label Gordon & Macphail For Intertrade
Port Ellen Distillery was based in 1825 by Alexander Mackay on Islay. The distillery operated constantly for 105 years till it grew to become a part of the DCL steady, and subsequently mothballed, in 1930.
1967 noticed the reopening of Port Ellen earlier than its doorways have been closed, seemingly for good, in 1983 through the whisky loch.
This Port Ellen 1969 15 Yr Previous Celtic Label Gordon & Macphail was bottled at 64.7% ABV for the Italian importers, Intertrade, in 1985, simply two years after the closure of Port Ellen.
The bottling was a part of the Celtic Label sequence, which was an Italian unique, making them each scarce and sought-after within the UK secondary market. Solely six bottles from your entire Celtic Label sequence have ever been dropped at public sale within the UK.
The label of the bottle shows Port Ellen’s identify and the age of the whisky in Celtic-style script. Aside from that, the bottle may be very unassuming. Inside, nonetheless, is Port Ellen whisky from the quick 16-year interval of exercise previous to the distillery’s premature closure.
Port Ellen was solely formally bottled once as a single malt in its lifetime, and followers of the distillery have needed to maintain themselves totally on Diageo’s Annual Releases, in addition to another impartial bottlings. As such, Single malt Port Ellen from the Nineteen Sixties is extraordinarily uncommon. An Italian unique from Intertrade? Even rarer.
Serge Valentin of WhiskyFun was given the chance to do that exceptionally uncommon whisky in August 2007, it was hardly a chance he may flip down.
Serge Valentin’s Tasting Notes On The Port Ellen 1969 15 Yr Previous Celtic Label Gordon & Macphail For Intertrade
Serge Valentin had the possibility to attempt the Port Ellen 1969 for Intertrade in 2007, and was instantly taken by this single malt:
“A reasonably younger Port Ellen from the very first years since final reopening, and at very excessive power! Let’s fasten our seatbelts…
Color: pale gold.
Nostril: very good notes of roasted espresso beans when holding my glass at a great 10cm away from my nostril in addition to newly minimize apples and contemporary almonds however let’s not tempt destiny and add slightly water… Oh sure, it’s very good. All on coal, peat, steel polish, tar (not a really daring one, that’s), mint, camphor… Distinctive.
Mouth (neat): hardly drinkable at full power however the few ‘pearls’ I took into my mouth revealed improbable notes of kumquats and pu-erh tea in addition to, once more, marzipan. With water: censored by the Anti-maltoporn police. Let’s simply add ‘numerous salt on the lengthy end’ and ‘completely stellar’. Ah, if solely G&M had not diluted entire stashes of 1969 or 1970 PE’s for his or her CC sequence (and consorts) on the time… However ‘different occasions, different realities’ I suppose. 96 factors.” – Serge Valentin, WhiskyFun.com, 2007
The Worth of the Port Ellen 1969 15 Yr Previous Celtic Label Gordon & Macphail For Intertrade At Public sale
As beforehand talked about, the Celtic Label bottlings have solely made their manner into the UK secondary market a handful of occasions. The Port Ellen, extra particularly has solely been offered 4 occasions. Most not too long ago it offered for £8,988 at Whisky Auctioneer in November 2023. Earlier than this, it offered in October 2023, January 2021, and March 2019 for between £5,400 and £12,500.
The Reopening of Port Ellen
In 2017, Diageo introduced a £35 million plan to revive each the Brora and Port Ellen distilleries, a lot to the delight of the distilleries’ cult followings. The plans were approved in early 2020.
Brora reopened in 2021 to a lot fanfare and launched the Brora Triptych in celebration.
Port Ellen was scheduled to reopen the identical yr. Nonetheless, there have been quite a few delays and, as of mid-January 2024, we’re nonetheless ready for information of Port Ellen’s resurrection.
With the distillery’s devoted following mixed with nearly 7 years of ready, we anticipate Port Ellen’s reopening to be a massively important occasion. This cult whisky that we misplaced within the loch will (hopefully) be reborn by the top of 2024.
Purchase Port Ellen Whisky
With Port Ellen’s revival on the horizon, now’s the proper time to beat the hype and buy some Port Ellen whiskies to your assortment. We have now a various collection of Port Ellen bottlings on our store, together with the Port Ellen 2nd Annual Release, a 1982 28 Year Old from Wilson & Morgan, and a Signatory Vintage 17 Year Old.
Browse our selection of Port Ellen on the store.
