Bowmore 15 years 2001 Signatory Vintage Cask n°20117 - One of 233 - bottled 2017 The Whisky Exchange Ca (Brown)

Scotland, Isle of Islay. Distillery operational. Owner: Beam - Suntory

Located on the Isle of Islay, in the heart of the village of the same name, in 1963 Bowmore became, under the aegis of Stanley P. Morrison (owner of the distillery until it was bought by the Japanese company Suntory in 1994), one of the greatest commercial successes in the Scotch whisky industry. Vault #1, responsible for some of its greatest releases, including Bowmore 30 Year Old 1963 and Bowmore Bicentenary, played an important role in forging its international reputation. Built below sea level against a natural dyke, its walls and beaten earth floors are constantly steeped in sea spray. Rooted in tradition, Bowmore is one of the last remaining distilleries to malt part of its own barley on-site. Whether matured in bourbon casks (White Bowmore 1964) or sherry casks (Black Bowmore 1964), its spirit, characterized by notes of liquorice, peat and eucalyptus, never fails to reveal the trademark hint of exotic fruit for which the distillery is known.

A Bowmore single cask (#20117) distilled in 2001 and bottled in 2017 by Signatory Vintage. Signatory Vintage’s founder Andrew Symington first started out in the whisky industry selecting casks for the Prestonfield House hotel in Edinburgh. In 1988, he set up his own company, investing in a small bottling chain, which he installed in his warehouses in Edinburgh. His first bottlings were released at cask strength and without chillfiltration or colouring, all of which was still fairly rare in the late 1980s. The legendary “Dumpy bottle” series also provided information not generally shared by bottlers, including the cask number, cask type and the number of bottles produced. Bottles were numbered by hand. Signatory Vintage developed a solid reputation not only for its legendary whiskies from iconic distilleries (Springbank, Ardbeg, Laphroaig, Bowmore) but also for its bottlings from very rare distilleries such as Ben Wyvis, Glen Flagler and Killyloch, And, of course, the many expressions distilled in a Lomond still from Miltonduff (Mosstowie), Glen Keith (Craigduff, Glenisla) and Glenburgie (Glencraig). In 2002, he bought the Edradour distillery in Pitlochry, in the Highlands of Scotland and moved Signatory Vintage vintage to the site, including the warehouses opposite the distillery. A limited edition of 233 bottles.