Port Ellen 20 years 1978 Of. Rare Malts Selection Natural Cask Strengh - bottled 1998 Limited Edition

  • 60.90% | 
  • 0.70L

A Port Ellen 20 year old distilled in 1978 and bottled at cask strength in 1998 for the Rare Malts series. Created in the mid-1990s by United Distillers (Diageo), the Rare Malts series features bottlings from many of the group’’s distilleries, includ…More info

Lot description

  • Distillery: Port Ellen
  • Appellation: Single Malt Whisky
  • Country/Region: Scotland , Islay
  • Quantity: 1 Bottle
  • Level: 1 low-shoulder
  • State: 1 slightly marked label, 1 slightly bin-soiled label

Fine Spirits Auction price estimate
Port Ellen 20 years 1978 Of. Rare Malts Selection Natural Cask Strengh - bottled 1998 Limited Edition

Fine Spirits Auction Price(1) corresponds to the hammer price and the buyer's premium charged by the auctioneer. (1)

Fine Spirits Auction Price(1) corresponds to the hammer price and the buyer's premium charged by the auctioneer. (1)

  • Current Price Estimate

  • €934
  • - (Highest price)
  • - (Lowest price)

Latest auction prices

  • 03/10/2025 €953
  • 02/08/2024 €1,192
  • 08/12/2023 €1,370
  • 03/06/2022 €1,711
  • 11/02/2022 €1,888

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Lot presentation
Port Ellen 20 years 1978 Of. Rare Malts Selection Natural Cask Strengh - bottled 1998 Limited Edition

Cuvée presentation

A Port Ellen 20 year old distilled in 1978 and bottled at cask strength in 1998 for the Rare Malts series. Created in the mid-1990s by United Distillers (Diageo), the Rare Malts series features bottlings from many of the group’’s distilleries, including some of the lesser known whose production was generally used for blends, as well as closed distilleries such as Port Ellen and Brora. Bottled at cask strength, the whiskies in the range are also known for their sometimes astounding alcohol content, often exceeding 60% ABV. The Rare Malts range was discontinued in 2005. Two versions of Port Ellen 1978 were produced for the Rare Malts Selection, this one at 60.9% and another bottled at 60.5% in 2000.

The distillery Port Ellen

Founded in 1825 by A. K. Mackay & Co. on the southern coast of the Isle of Islay, Port Ellen came under the control of John Ramsay in 1836, a period during which the site notably contributed to the development of whisky exports to North America. The distillery became part of the Distillers Company Limited (DCL) in 1925 and subsequently underwent a prolonged period of closure before returning to production in the late 1960s. Primarily operated to supply malt whisky for blends, Port Ellen ceased distillation in May 1983 as part of a broader rationalisation of Scotch whisky production capacity. Stocks distilled before the closure continued to mature and were subsequently bottled, notably through Diageo’s Special Releases, which included seventeen annual Port Ellen editions between 2001 and 2017. After more than forty years without production, Diageo officially restarted distillation at Port Ellen in March 2024. The rebuilt facility incorporates two pairs of stills: the “Phoenix Stills”, designed to replicate the stills used before the 1983 closure, and the “Experimental Stills”, combined with a spirit safe designed to allow more precise separation of the different fractions of the spirit run. Bottlings drawn from historical stocks therefore originate exclusively from spirit distilled up to 1983, while production resumed in 2024 represents a distinct new period in the chronology of Port Ellen.

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Detailed characteristics

  • Distillery: Port Ellen
  • Vintage: 1978
  • Bottler: Of.
  • Age: 20 years
  • Appellation: Single Malt Whisky
  • Country/Region: Scotland , Islay
  • Alcohol percentage: 60.90 %
  • Volume: 0.70L
  • Quantity: 1 Bottle
  • Level: 1 low-shoulder
  • State: 1 slightly marked label, 1 slightly bin-soiled label
  • Case: Yes
  • Origin: Private individual
  • Recoverable VAT: No
  • Color: Brown

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