Rare 1943 single malt on sale for £30k a bottle

● Vintage dates from 1943 ● 40 decanters available globally

A single malt whisky dating from the Second World War has gone on sale for £30,000 a bottle.

The Gordon & Macphail whisky was distilled on 14 January 1943, as Prime Minister Winston Churchill met President Franklin D Roosevelt, General Charles de Gaulle and General Dwight D Eisenhower at the Casablanca Conference.

The Elgin-based malt whisky specialists yesterday announced the release of Private Collection Glenlivet 1943, the latest offering in its Private Collection range.

Only 40 decanters will be available for sale globally, for £30,000 each.

In 1943, Cask 121 was selected by John and George Urquhart, first and second generation of the Urquhart family, for filling at the Glenlivet Distillery.

Stephen Rankin, a director of the company and senior partner

0 Stephen Rankin says Private Collection Glenlivet 1943 has been nurtured by four generations John Urquhart’s greatgrandson, made the decision to bottle it.

He said: “This beautiful whisky has been nurtured and cared for by four generations of our family and it gives us enormous pleasure to release this unique and incredibly rare single malt.

“Gordon & Macphail has been in the whisky business for over 122 years, with each generation building and handing on a lifetime’s expertise to the next. We believe Private Collection Glenlivet 1943 by Gordon & Macphail is a malt without comparison from a defining date in the history of a world in conflict.

“Today, whisky is a wonderfully unifying drink and this rare example gives people from across the world the chance to own and savour a defining piece of Scotland’s liquid history.”

The release of Cask 121 represents the last 1943 vintage from the Gordon & Macphail stock inventory.

Gordon & Macphail was founded in Elgin, Moray, in 1895.

Whisky writer and rare whisky specialist Jonny Mccormick said: “Gordon & Macphail is a singular whisky company emphasised by their incomparable capacity to draw on stocks from the 1940s.

“This is an unparalleled opportunity to acquire an exquisite whisky that embodies the concept of rarity.

“The remarkable complexity and vivid flavours that have developed over a lifetime in wood ensure this single malt Scotch whisky will make a handsome addition to the world’s finest whisky collections.”

Stuart Urquhart, Gordon and Macphail’s associate director of whisky supply, said: “We’ve routinely sampled it over its time.”

He said the decision to bottle the spirit was taken in 2013.