Good things come to those who wait. For the Glenlivet, the oldest legal distillery in Scotland, that adage rang true last week as it introduced a 55 year old single malt scotch whisky, its most aged spirit to date, just in time for its 200th anniversary.
The Glenlivet Eternal Collection, First Edition, 55 Year Old is priced, fittingly at $55,000 a bottle, with only 100 bottles being produced—making it not just Glenlivet’s oldest offering to date, but also its most expensive.
This release, which matured for over five decades before it was finished in a seasoned sherry cask, is the first in an annual series from Glenlivet that will feature limited whiskies made from the same cask; every bottle run of the Eternal Collection will be aged for an additional year, making each new iteration a precious opportunity to partake in whisky history.
For Glenlivet Cask Master Kevin Balmforth—who called working on the whisky the “pinnacle” of his career at the celebration of the release at the brand’s distillery in Ballindalloch—the 55 year old is the embodiment of the distillery’s legacy in the single malt space and its commitment to innovation.
“Thanks to decades of collaboration from our team of cask experts, past and present, the introduction of The Eternal Collection represents a monumental moment for whisky connoisseurs and luxury appreciators to add a pivotal piece of Scotch whisky legacy to their collection,” Balmforth said. “It epitomizes The Glenlivet’s commitment to excellence within Scotch innovation as we continue to push to creative new heights in single malts.”
The 55 year old, which has notes of blackcurrant jam, vanilla fudge and dark chocolate, as well as orange, crystalized ginger and clove spice, is also making waves in the art world, thanks to a partnership with computational architect Michael Hansmeyer. The artist, who drew inspiration for the sculpture from the distillery’s picturesque landscape, especially the River Livet, designed a jesmonite piece with rose gold plating, perfectly shaped to cradle a special edition bottle of the whisky.
“Weaving threads of intelligent technologies to create something that escapes conformity and classification to celebrate such an aged whisky has been a thrill,” Hansmeyer said. “I created this sculpture as a tribute to the complexity of The Glenlivet’s oldest expression and the rugged beauty of the distillery’s Scottish landscape, capturing the spirit of where innovation meets tradition.”
The special edition bottle and sculpture will be available exclusively at auction at Sotheby’s from October 18 to November 1, with all proceeds benefiting the National Trust for Scotland. Hansmeyer’s collaboration with the brand is the first in a series of artists who will be commissioned to create work that speaks to each new release of the Eternal Collection.
