Islay’s oldest working distillery, Bowmore was established in 1779 and is now regarded as one of the most popular malts not only on Islay, but in the whole of Scotland. The distillery was acquired by Stanley P. Morrison in 1963, ushering in an era of iconic single malts, including the legendary Black Bowmore, credited by many as the genesis of whisky collecting, bottled in 1995. The distillery was bought under the control Suntory the year prior (they had been stakeholders since 1989), and it remains one of the most collectible brands in Scotch whisky today. Bowmore is one of the few remaining Scottish distilleries to use its own floor maltings, providing them with 40% of their requirements.

This rare expression was distilled in 1968 and was selected by and exclusively bottled for The Whisky Fair in February 2004.

Bottled from cask #3818, this is one of 150 bottles.

Colour; straw. Nose: this one starts on the usual, most enjoyable blast of tropical fruits (mainly pineapples and pink grapefruits, followed by a little passion fruit.) It gets then a little milky and feinty (mashed potatoes), and finally a little peaty (clean farmy aromas, hay). No sign of woodiness, which is quite incredible – and maybe little fern and wet moss. Pretty simple but flawless and typically ‘1968 Bowmore’. Mouth: quite some body in spite of the low alcohol! Starts quite sweet, fruity and gingery. Nice notes of wax, cardboard, orange juice and caramel crème. Not exactly nervous but still very enjoyable. Goes on with some notes of tangerines (as expected), oriental pastries, orange cake and marmalade… The finish is rather long – again, longer than expected, getting a little spicy. A classical old Bowmore, maybe a tad simple but not tired at all.

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