Highland Park launches 50-year old

Highland Park has launched its oldest malt whisky, which also happens to be the oldest ever malt whisky from the Islands.

Only 275 bottles of the 50-year-old scotch have been produced, drawn from casks filled in 1960.

It will be sold exclusively at Harrods until the end of October, before certain bottles are allocated to travel retail and luxury outlets.

Assembled journalists and industry figures at the Harrods launch party – a number of whom were not even born back in 1960 – were reminded that it was the year the Beatles were founded, Mossad captured Adolf Eichmann in Argentina, Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho was released, To Kill a Mockingbird was published and JFK entered the public’s consciousness via the first ever televised presidential debate.

As a result the distillery was “desperate to have packaging to match such a wonderful whisky from such a momentous year,” said Matthew Turner, global controller for Highland Park.

Maeve Gillies, a jeweller native to Orkney, was chosen to design the sterling silver decoration wrapped around the bottle.

Gillies, whose father was one of the founding members of the Scotch Whisky Association, said she wanted to “express the heritage” of Highland Park and the island of Orkney.

“I wanted the bottle to feel like it had been washed up on the beach,” she continued. “It had to be rugged, authentic but luxurious.”

Speaking to the drinks business Gerry Tosh, head of brand education for Highland Park, explained that, while Highland Park was founded – or caught by the tax collectors, as he joked – in 1798, it had only been producing its own single malt whiskies over the last couple of decades.

Therefore, the 50-year old was the distillery’s chance to: “Plant a stake in the ground and say ‘look at us. We have arrived’.”

“We could have had solid crystal decanters encased in gold, dripping with rubies but that’s not what Highland Park is about.

“We want to produce a whisky that looks good but tastes even better,” he concluded.

He continued that with any luck the 50-year old expression would become a regular feature of the Highland Park stable, joining the 25, 30 and 40-year olds.

Rupert Millar, 06.10.2010