Glenlivet, distilled 1937.

[Aidan]

Anyone know anything about this?

[bernstein]

Hi Aidan,
looks like one of Gordon & MacPhail’s ‘Rare Vintage Range’ bottles. If it’s for real, it’s a beauty!
What strikes me a little bit curious though is the label. It shows ‘1937’ as the year of distillation (in a variation to their standard label, though – but that might happen). And it’s supposed to be a Cask Strength at 57,8%.
Now, a quick research on Gordon & MacPhails homepage shows that most of their Rare Vintage Range expressions are diluted to 40% or 43% (as their CC's are as well). There are of course Cask Strength versions – but they’re labeled completely different (you'll find examples under 'Our Range' and 'Whisky Tasting Notes').
It might be nothing more than a storm in a dram – but why not check with Gordon & MacPhails?
http://www.gordonandmacphail.com/index.html

[Aidan]

Thanks Bernstein

I e-mailed them just now on your advice. I'll see what they say. Anyway, obviously I hope it's for real as I've bought it...

[richard]

hi aidan i had the same ideas as bernstein i looked at the whisky exchange as he has photos of most of what he sells i havent seen a glenlivet that looks that old at that proof but that doesnt meen to say anythings wrong
where did you buy it from and can i ask what you paid for as well and how old do you think the whisky is as i thought it might have a neck label it might be worth talking to sukinder at twe or martin green at mctears
hope this helps and everything is okay


richard

[Aidan]

I sent you a pm, richard.

Anyway, it will be nice if it's for real.

[Lawrence]

I tried several whiskies with that label in the George in Inverary two years ago from Glenlivet, they were very good.

Also Loch Fyne Whiskies has some of these bottles on their website at very reasonable prices. This label is the genuine product and is not a fake.

[Aidan]

Thanks

I've also seen them at the whisky exchange, but for much higher prices.

Anyway, I think I got mine for a very good price.

My concern is that I've never seen these at cask strength before. Anyway, mine is still in the post, so I might never even get it. ..

[richard]

hi lawrence did you ever get the christies auction books this applies to any one else i await anybodys reply

richard

[Lawrence]

Nope, never saw the Christies book but I have an older (2003) "Collecting Malt Whisky" .

Lawrence

[richard]

without you seeing the book i cant explain i will see if i can do something about it at my end

richard

[Iain]

Is it true that whisky loses strength the longer it remains in the cask? The label on this one (distilled 1937?) claims a pretty high abv of 57.8 - I wonder when it was bottled?

I note that it is a 75 cls bottle, so if it was intended for an EC market then it must have been bottled pre-1992. More likely it was bottled for US market? The tax strip on the neck/cap will confirm or deny that notion, once it arrives in the post. The back label too. If it was bottled for US, this might explain some label anomalies?

I'm sure G&M have records of all their recent-ish 75 cls bottlings and will supply the info you need. Hope it's ok!

[Aidan]

Thanks Ian

I e-mailed G&M and I'm sure they'll get back soon. I have seen very old whiskeys with high abvs, so this is possible. I think it just varies from cask to cask.

[Lawrence]

I think it just varies from cask to cask.

That is 100% accurate.

[richard]

hi aidan any joy from gordon and mcphails


richard

[Aidan]

Hi Richard - no, nor from the whisky exchange. I would say it might take them a while to reply etc.

I have got the bottle, though, and it looks fine. The name of the importer is on it too - Sestante Import SRL - Parma.

[richard]

thanks aidan let us know the results and i hope its good news

richard

[bernstein]

I have got the bottle, though, and it looks fine. The name of the importer is on it too - Sestante Import SRL - Parma.

Hi Aidan - looks fairly good to me - Sestante Import SRL - Parma is listed as importer with quite a few bottlings at mctears. Looks like you've got a real gem!

[Iain]

Strangely, there are a lot of old Sestante-imported Macallan-Glenlivets, distilled 1937, listed in old Mctears auction pages. Haven't found any TGs from 1937 yet.

[Aidan]

I wonder why there's no age statement on the bottle. There are a few different vintages reviewed in The Whisky Bible too.

[Iain]

The G&M Glenlivet 1937 on the Whisky Exchange site appears with the claim "Bottled About 1985". The contents are given in fluid ounces, so presumably it was bottled for the UK market.

[Aidan]

Ian, yeah, I saw they were bottled about then. I'd say they were all bottled pretty much the same time. That would make this about 50 yrs old. It's interesting that it also has a screw cap.

[Aidan]

I contacted Gordon & Macphail and they were very helpful. They deserve top marks. So far, they believe it is perfectly fine.

[bernstein]

Splendid!
Good to hear that, Aidan.

[Aidan]

Thanks Bernstein

I've now bought a similar bottle as well, although it's a 15 yr old bottled in the 1980s - same kind of label. There are modern vintages available too.

[chunky]

Ian, yeah, I saw they were bottled about then. I'd say they were all bottled pretty much the same time. That would make this about 50 yrs old. It's interesting that it also has a screw cap.

hi!! Im a virgin here, I strayed onto this site and obviosly onto this issue, and this matter re. the cap it made me laugh, would you if spent most of your life producing a malt and carefuly nurturing the amber liquid, rotating the barrels, so the angels didnt take too much until ready for bottling, would you put it in a coke bottle? or would you provide a more dignified means of protecting the contents (vapour or liquid)? Dont want to dampen the "spirits" but please show me the ropes if any other established distiler bottles the same way

Ps did they have the means to press screw caps this way in 1985?

[Aidan]

Hi Chunky

According to Gordon and Macphail, they did use screwcaps. Also, similar bottles in this range all used screwcaps. It's just a presentation thing really, as corks do nothing for the whisky. I actually prefer a screwcap.

[chunky]

Hi Aiden

following my notes re the "screwcap" I did alittle research into aged whiskeys and to my astonishment noticed several more bottles with the afore mentioned closure. I would have thought that cork, being neutral in flavourings would be the prefered choise over metalic materials (although plastic coated). If you collect Malts for an investment (ltd bottels), would you trust a metal cap to prevent contamination of the liquid gold

[Aidan]

Hi Chunky

For preserving the whisky, a screwcap would probably be better than a cork, as corks can become contaminated, although this is rare. I think more and more wines are moving towards screwcaps for this reason. Most of these would be young wines that are meant to be consumed young.

That said, most whiskies from this era do have corks, so this is a bit unusual.

[Aidan]

I bought this Glenlivet a good while ago that I later thought might be suspect, because I had never seen this bottle before. So I posted its details here, e-mailed malt maniacs, e-mailed Gordon and MacPhail with comprehensive details (photos and bottle details), and then sent it to a whisky auctioneer/valuer expressing my concerns. Gordon & MacPhail said that they believed it to be genuine, as did the valuer. Nobody else could really tell me if it was real or not, so I assumed it was genuine. I sold it with the auctioneer. I don't know what the story with it is now. What if it turns out that it is not genuine, as Malt Maniacs now have doubts about it?

[Deactivated Member]

I don't know the law in Ireland, but the law here (I think) is that you would be obliged to refund money of someone to whom you had sold it if they proved it to be a fake. You would then seek a refund from whomever sold you the bottle, and so on back down the line. If anyone could be proven to have sold it as genuine whilst knowing it to be fake, then they could be convicted of fraud. Selling an itemn in good faith that later proved to be fake would probably not result in conviction for an offence.

[Aidan]

Well if it is a fake, the buyer diserves his or her money back, that's for sure.

[irishwhiskeychaser]

Hi Aiden

following my notes re the "screwcap" I did alittle research into aged whiskeys and to my astonishment noticed several more bottles with the afore mentioned closure. I would have thought that cork, being neutral in flavourings would be the prefered choise over metalic materials (although plastic coated). If you collect Malts for an investment (ltd bottels), would you trust a metal cap to prevent contamination of the liquid gold

Believe it or not the screw cap is supposed to prevent ulage better than the cork tops. But it does depend on how secure the cap is in the first place. I seen some fairly recent screw tops (10yrs in a bottle) with severe ulage. But the cork is asthetically much nicer. By the way welcome to the Forum Chunky...