Gordon & MacPhail has launched the fourth edition in its annual series celebrating the legacy of George Urquhart, aka Mr George.
The Mr George Legacy 1958 from Glen Grant Distillery was taken from a first-fill sherry butt made to Mr George's exact specifications. It was bottled in November 2023 at cask strength of 56.5% ABV — an unusually high strength for a whisky left to mature for 65 years.
Only 376 bottles are being made available worldwide, priced at £7,000 each. Tasting notes supplied by Gordon & MacPhail say the whisky is smooth and full bodied with notes of sweet spices, Seville orange peel, morello cherry, coffee bean, and a hint of smoke.
Described by whisky writer Charles Maclean as “the father of single malt whisky”, George Urquhart was a second-generation member of the family that founded (and still runs) Gordon & MacPhail in 1895. One of his most notable innovations was the launch of the Connoisseurs Choice range in 1968, which championed single malt whiskies at a time when most were solely used for blending. Gordon & MacPhail says that its philosophy of “going against the grain” when necessary is inspired by Mr George's attitude to whisky maturation.
Stuart Urquhart, operations director at Gordon & MacPhail, said: “My grandfather had a particular affinity with Glen Grant Distillery. Local to our home in Elgin, Mr George had a strong relationship with the owners and distillers through the decades and he enjoyed experimenting with different casks to complement the distillery’s lighter spirit style.
“Back in the 1950s, the spirit would have been slightly smoky due to floor maltings and a small level of peat being used, which is a style rarely seen in today’s modern Speyside whiskies, giving this whisky a charred oakiness, balanced by long-term maturation in a sherry cask made of European oak.”
Charles MacLean added: “This is an exceptionally fine old whisky, hugely complex, but still remarkably vivacious. Another worthy tribute to Mr George Urquhart, the man who put malt whisky on the map.”
