For collectors who believe the finest things are worth waiting for, Glenmorangie has unveiled a new rarity more than half a century in the making.
The legendary Highland distillery has announced Glenmorangie 50 Years Old, the oldest whisky it has ever bottled. Limited to just 149 numbered bottles worldwide and priced at $36,000, the release pairs five decades of whisky-making with an extraordinary collaboration spanning the worlds of spirits, art and design.
The story begins in the mid-1970s, with some of the final batches of barley malted in Glenmorangie’s own floor maltings before they were decommissioned in 1977. The spirit was matured in bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks, with Master Distiller Dr Bill Lumsden later selecting and marrying a small parcel of the whisky for an exceptionally long final maturation.
After 50 years, the resulting whisky is dark mahogany in color, with aromas of baked orange, sultanas and nutmeg, followed by notes of toffee, Assam tea, clove and oak. The finish is long and lingering, with hints of aniseed, treacle toffee and eucalyptus.
But for a release this rare, the bottle itself is only part of the story.
Glenmorangie enlisted American ceramic artists Peter and Laurie Pincus to create 149 individually crafted porcelain display vessels. The project took approximately 1,000 days, with the artists developing 50 bespoke color pigments inspired by the whisky’s tasting notes. Each vessel is unique, but together they can form a tessellated installation titled Together in Spirit, turning the collection into both a celebration of whisky and a work of contemporary art.
It is a fitting presentation for a whisky that captures a disappearing piece of Glenmorangie history: a spirit distilled from barley malted onsite more than five decades ago and carefully stewarded through generations.
Glenmorangie 50 Years Old is available now through the Moët Hennessy Private Client Team, the Glenmorangie Distillery Visitor Centre in Tain, and via private inquiry.
To get in touch with the Glenmorangie team or to learn more, visit Glenmorangie.com/en-us.
