With just 225 bottles available for sale for £39,000 apiece, Orkney-based distillery Highland Park has launched its oldest release to date: a 54-year-old Single Malt Scotch whiskey.
The limited edition whisky, which has an RRP of £39,000, was produced to commemorate Highland Park's 225th birthday. It will be sold in the UK through Berry Bros. & Rudd and The Whisky Store starting on February 23.
Four refill butts and six refill hogsheads of Highland Park's oldest expression to date were mixed in February 2008 and refilled into first fill European sherry butts, where the whiskey continued to develop. The remaining 14 years of maturation have been spent in ex-sherry barrels starting in 2008.
"Representing a quarter of Highland Park's life, we felt it was a suitable way to honor our 225th anniversary; born and created in the heart of Orkney" ~ Gordon Motion, master distiller of Highland Park
The Highland Park 54 Year Old release, which costs £39,000, includes a specially embossed bottle of the whisky and a presentation box made of Scottish oak wood.
Also, each purchaser will receive an invitation to Orkney for a unique experience.
Craftsman and designer John Galvin created the boxes that house the 54-year-old expression to resemble the Yesnaby rocks in Orkney. The base's conical "push" pays homage to the distillery's mash tuns. The bottle containing the unusual, limited-edition 54 Year Old liquor was made by senior designer Michael Rudak at Stoelzle Flaconnage.
About Highland Park Distillery
One of the most northeast whiskey distilleries in the world is Highland Park, which is situated in Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland. Magnus Eunson, a local smuggler and butcher infamous for concealing illegal whiskey casks in his church, created it in 1798. Traditional manufacturing techniques, distinctive peat and heather tastes, and Viking-inspired branding make Highland Park famous.
Drying its malted barley with traditional floor maltings and peat from a nearby source gives the distillery a particular smokey and sweet taste. With a penchant for sherry barrels and a variety of cask types, Highland Park also has its own method of maturation that results in a rich and nuanced taste profile.
In addition to its standard line of 12 year old, 18 year old, and 25 year old single malts, Highland Park also creates a variety of limited-edition releases and unique bottlings. Moreover, the distillery creates many peated and unpeated expressions with different degrees of smokiness and sweetness.
With several of its limited edition releases sporting Norse-inspired titles and graphics, Highland Park has recently also gained recognition for its Viking-inspired branding and marketing. Overall, Highland Park is a distillery with a fascinating past, original production techniques, and a variety of outstanding whiskies that appeal to both traditionalists and whiskey connoisseurs seeking out something fresh and novel.
