225 bottles for 225th anniversary of distillery
Highland Park Distillery, Orkney's best-known Scotch whisky maker, will soon celebrate 225. founding anniversary. As is often done in such cases, in order to honor this anniversary in a proper way, it was decided to select and bottle some special edition whisky.
Highland Park 54yo (46.9% vol.) will appear in a strictly limited quantity. One bottle has been prepared for each year of the distillery's operation, so this edition will be limited to 225 bottles. However, this does not mean that it is in the full sense of the word single cask. Distilled in 1968, the whisky went into four refill butt casks and six refill hogseads. So in essence, this is a whisky that comes from as many as 10 casks. Their contents were bottled in first-fill European oak barrels in 2008. So we are dealing if not with a typical finish, then with a two-stage matriculation. An additional 14 years in first-fill casks gave the whisky a deep color and increased its aromatic and flavor intensity.
Such a special whisky requires a special setting. Highland Park 54yo, the oldest whisky from the distillery to date, came in a specially molded crystal decanter designed by Michael Rudak. The unusual design was inspired by the natural contrasts between land and water found at every turn in Orkney. The Ring of Brodgar stone circle and Yesnaby cliffs played a special role in the design of the decanter. It is impossible to talk about the design of the bottle without mentioning the absolutely extraordinary design of the wooden box, matching the shape of the bottle so that they give the impression of unity, and a kind of wrapping of the glass with the wood of the bottle. The oak box was designed and made by Glasgow-based sculptor John Galvin.
The debut of this remarkable whisky has been announced for today, February 23, 2023. The whisky will only be available in a few select stores, priced at £39,000 per bottle. The price also includes an invitation to an excursion to Orkney.
Highland Park is a whisky maker, founded in 1789, making it one of Scotland's oldest distilleries. Located in Kirkwall, the largest village in the Orkney archipelago, it is Scotland's northernmost distillery. It was founded by a man named David Robertson, but long before it officially began operations, a well-known local moonshiner, Magnus Eunson, a semi-legendary figure, was running an illegal tempering operation at the same location. In its marketing message, Highland Park relies on the medieval history of Orkney, and the influence of the Vikings, whose rule the islands were under for many years.
Highland Park is now owned by the Edrington Group, the same group that owns Macallan in Speyside. Some of the distillate produced in Kirkwall is transported to the warehouses of the long-defunct Parkmore distillery, also in Speyside.
Perhaps Highland Park 54yo is not necessarily a dram to sip in the evening while watching your favorite TV series, but in the offer of the House of Whisky Online we have a wide selection of other, more suitable highland Park whisky. We invite you to visit and take a look at our shelves.
[23.02.2023 / photo: Highland Park]