G&M Private Collection Milton 1949

Tasting Notes

Producer Tasting Note

Nose: sherry influences intertwine with sweet vanilla pod and seville orange. Stewed fruit aromas give way to vibrant festive spice and soft lemon zest.

Taste: flavours of butterscotch give way to bright citrus and nutmeg. Baked apple notes come to the fore alongside poached pear and honeycomb.

FInish: a long finish with lingering apple, dark toffee and subtle smoke.

92pts Whisky Fun

"Always an utter joy to taste some whisky that's (much) older than you. A puncheon typically shelters approx. 500 litres while this one comes with an outturn of 125 litres, which suggests that exactly ¾ of the content has gone to many generations of angels. Unless the Directors have kept some in demijohns for their own needs, which is exactly what I would have done myself (right, right). Anyway, let's try the oldest whisky from 'the oldest working Distillery in the Highlands' (1786), although the fine people at Glenturret may disagree here. Colour: pure gold. Nose: once again, this was to be expected. The nose is magnificent, incredibly fresh, and rather on many herbs and teas, complemented with a little beeswax and shoe polish, as well as wee pink bananas at the market. There is also a rather profound minerality that I was not expecting in this context. As for those herbs and teas, we'll mention the usual chamomile, mint leaves, woodruff and then whiffs of elderflowers. There is also a little natural vanilla, sesame oil and grated zests, but those would remain in the background. All in all, I wouldn't have said 'first fill sherry' this far and we're pretty far from 'brother Longmorn' of similar ages in that respect, but maybe was it a fino or a manzanilla? Or one of those amontillado-y finos from Montilla that they're making out of PX rather than palomino? We've just tried a magnificent old bottle of that at Château Whiskyfun. Mouth: always the same stress with these very old whiskies, will they have become too oaky? In truth it is oaky indeed, but as I have noticed in the past with other very old ones from G&M's, that oakiness got converted into lovely piney notes, propolis, banana skins, essential oils, thyme, nutmeg, peppery cinnamon… There is an awesome fruity-ish bitterness too, and as expected, many things mentholy. Cough syrups, creams and cordials, and certainly some high-cuvée of Chartreuse. The monks are always right, as long as they behave. Nutshell: fantastic piney/mentholy freshness. Finish: oh, some raisins and a touch of marmalade! All the rest remains on fresh mint and related molecules. Comments: what's difficult indeed here is to forget about the house's old Glen Grants, Longmorns or even Glenlivets while trying this Strathisla that, stylistically, does not play in exactly the same yard, as we say. But it rather does as far as overall quality's concerned. SGP:571 - 92 points."

Independent Bottler

Adapted from an article written for Celtic Life Magazine by Andrew Ferguson:

In 1895 James Gordon and John Alexander MacPhail opened a grocery business in the City of Elgin, the heart of Scotland’s Speyside whisky region. The business sold groceries, tea, coffee and wines from all over the world. 125 years later, Gordon & MacPhail still operates the grocery business in Elgin, but its real enterprise is as an Independent Bottler and Distiller of Scotch Whisky.

In the early years of the business Gordon and MacPhail brought in a young John Urquhart as apprentice. Urquhart had a knack for selecting and blending whiskies from local distilleries. He also began brokering casks and independently bottling single malt from famous distilleries like Glenlivet, Mortlach and Glen Grant. The practice of filling casks of new make whisky, rather than simply purchasing mature casks began at this time. This is something which sets Gordon MacPhail apart from almost all other independent bottlers to this day, and it gave them a leg up through leaner years. In 1915 John Urquhart was made senior partner, and though the firm would keep its name, from this point on it would remain privately owned by the Urquhart family.

In 1933 George Urquhart, aka “Mr. George”, joined his father in the business. He was heavily involved in the firm’s whisky business, travelling widely to showcase Gordon & MacPhail whiskies. G&M’s business thrived during and after World War II. Having had the foresight to lay down large numbers of casks in the 1930s and early 1940s, they were in a strong position to meet demand, especially in America. This was a difficult time for most of the industry with barley rationing dramatically reducing distilling.

In 1968, under George Urquhart’s leadership, Gordon & MacPhail launched the Connoisseurs Choice range. At a time when few distilleries were bottling their own whisky as single malt (rather producing it for use in Blended Scotch whiskies), Gordon & MacPhail began marketing single malts from distilleries across Scotland. The range is still being bottled today.

The third generation began entering the business with George’s son Ian Urquhart in 1967. He was joined by David Urquhart in 1972, as well as Michael Urquhart and Rosemary Rankin in 1981. The family firm continued to thrive even during the industry downturn of the 1980s and ear 90’s, emerging as the undisputed preeminent independent bottler of Scotch whisky. In the 2010s the torch was passed to the 4th generation, with at least five of John Urquhart’s descendants now involved in the business.

It had always been John Urquhart’s vision for the family to own a distillery of its own. The dream was finally realized in 1993 with the acquisition of the closed Benromach Distillery in the nearby town of Forres. The distillery was in rough shape, and it took nearly 5 years to get it up and running. HRH Prince Charles was on hand in 1998 for its official reopening. Never content to rest on their laurels, the firm announced plans in 2019 to open a brand-new distillery in the Cairngorms National Park. The Cairn Distillery is scheduled to open in 2022.

One of the most remarkable things about Gordon & MacPhail is the vision it had to mature whiskies to great ages. Few other whisky firms, whether distilleries or independent bottlers, have ever had the foresight to mature casks for more than 30 or 40 years. In 2010 G&M bottled the Generations Mortlach 70 Years Old, which was the oldest whisky ever bottled at the time. They followed up on that milestone by bottling 70-year-old Glenlivet in both 2011 and 2012. And then in 2015 they once again they raised the bar by bottling the Generations Mortlach 75 Year. Of the 10 oldest whiskies ever bottled, all but 2 have been bottled by G&M.

It is almost certain that Gordon MacPhail will one day bottle the first ever one-hundred-year-old whisky, but that may still be a couple of decades away. Their oldest maturing stocks are from the late 1930s and early 1940s. A number of these casks, 15 First Fill Sherry Butts to be precise, were filled for Gordon & MacPhail at the Glenlivet Distillery on February 3rd, 1940. Most of these casks have been bottled over the decades, but G&M dipped into another of these casks this year to bottle another whisky. The Generations Glenlivet 80 Year, once more the oldest bottle of Scotch Whisky ever bottled. It isn’t inexpensive, but I can vouch for it in one regard… it doesn’t disappoint!

Gordon & MacPhail whiskies can be found all over the world with whiskies ranging from under $100 to $100,000.00 or more. Their grocery shop in Elgin is the brand's spiritual home, with a section dedicated to Scotch Whisky that showcases more than 1000 bottles. Prior to Covid-19 the shop offered both tastings and in-store sampling. As does their nearby Benromach Distillery in Forres, one of the smallest and most traditional distilleries in the Speyside.