GLENGLASSAUGH SERPENTINE COASTAL CASK COLLECTION
SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKEY
HIGHLANDS, SCOTLAND
Let’s put this into proper context:
There are some 50 Years out there that go for $40,000 a bottle — and they’re wonderful bottles, to be sure, but today, we're bringing you 4 equally extraordinary bottles with nearly 200 YEARS of age statement ... and all for less than $40,000.
The producer? None other than Glenglassaugh, the resurrected Highland distillery that produced Whisky Advocate's #1 bottling of 2023.
These remarkable whiskies (51, 50, 49, and 48 years old, and each showcasing a distinct, nuanced cask finish) possess a sophistication and maturity that simply cannot be faked, or rushed; that can only come from expert casking and extraordinary patience.
It’s a fantasy of a collection that includes:
a 51-year-old matured in an Oloroso Puncheon, delivering waves of raisin balsamic and blackberry jus
a 50-year-old aged in Virgin Oak, and playing out across the palate with silken richness
a 49-year-old from a Bourbon Barrel that unfolds with tropical, sun-drenched fruit
a 48-year-old finished in an Aleatico Red Wine Barrique that marries blackberry and lychee with passionfruit and sea salt.
What’s extra special is that each of these bottles (housed in a beautiful carved serpentine case) tells its own story, while maintaining the signature that makes Glenglassaugh so distinctive and wonderful, that one-two of Highland depth and maritime character.
We need to take a moment to hail the alchemical genius of their Master Distiller, the great Dr. Rachel Barrie, who has personally nosed more than 150,000 barrel samples throughout her career, and who has been instrumental to the tremendous run this distiller has been on, since reopening in 2008.
Founded in 1875, Glenglassaugh went dark in 1907 for 53 years, reopening only briefly before closing again in 1986, seemingly for good. But whisky, like life, is full of unexpected turns. In 2008, an investment group breathed new life into the silent stills, and in 2016, Brown-Forman (owner of Jack Daniel's) acquired the distillery, placing it under the operational umbrella of BenRiach alongside GlenDronach.
We’re all so fortunate that they did.
In the wine world, we talk all the time about terroir — well, these are genuinely terroir-driven single malts.
The distillery sits on Sandend Bay, along the Moray Firth Coast, and the confluence of elements, particularly the spring water and sea salt-filled air that finds its way into the aging warehouses, makes for whiskies that, as their tagline rightfully claims, are "shaped by land and sea."
Unlike some Highland distillers that favor a softer approach, Glenglassaugh goes the other direction: these are whiskies of power and presence. But the whiskies in the Serpentine Collection don’t just grab you by the collar. Their intensity never comes at the expense of nuance or complexity. There’s tremendous balance here, and subtlety, and variety, as the whiskies evolve from moment to moment in the glass.
The opportunity to experience single malts of this age and pedigree comes along perhaps once in a generation. Our allocation is extremely limited, however, so we urge you to secure these bottles — the culmination of nearly 150 years of Scottish whisky-making tradition — while we still have them!